Then They Begin
by scriveyner
Summary: Masayoshi stared at Gotou, and then parroted his words right back at him. "But Gotou-san," he said. "There haven't been WOLVES in Japan for a hundred years..."
1. Chapter 1

Masayoshi woke when Gotou moved, slipping out of the bed with a silent grace that he'd never seen before. He was naked - cast in silhouette by the light left on over the sink - and he hesitated a moment, as if aware of Masayoshi's eyes on him, drowsy but alert.

He yawned, back sore from sleeping upright against the wall. "Moon's set?" Masayoshi asked, averting his eyes just a little as Gotou dressed. "Where are you going?"

"Need a smoke." Gotou's voice still didn't sound right, deeper and jagged, like he had swallowed a handful of rocks. He didn't look back at Masayoshi at all, his shoulders held stiff.

"I'll come-" Masayoshi started to shift on the bed, but Gotou made a noise that still sounded like a growl.

" _ _No__." There was a moment's stunned silence from Masayoshi at the sheer viciousness of his voice - and then Gotou coughed, cleared his throat a little and sounded for the first time in a while, like himself. "No, that's not a good idea."

"Why not?" Masayoshi narrowed his eyes, drawing his legs forward toward himself, resting his arms on his knees. He'd just spend the night with a wolf in his lap, he didn't see how walking outside to keep Gotou company as he smoked was a __bad__ thing.

"Just stay there," Gotou ordered him, and when Masayoshi raised his voice in protest, Gotou ignored him and slammed the apartment door shut behind him.

* * *

Gotou walked around the apartment building, toward the trash collection area. He had waited on the other side of the door for a minute, to see if Masayoshi would storm after him - and when he didn't hear that movement, walked himself the requisite number of steps away from the door and then some.

He lit his cigarette with shaking hands, and then tilted his head back and looked at the sky. It was already quite light out - pink and red tinted along the horizon, even if the streets themselves were still dark - and yes, the moon had set. Quite a while ago, but he hadn't wanted to move when he woke, his head in Masayoshi's lap, hand warm on his neck. It was comfortable in a way he hadn't been in a long time, and that was making him strangely anxious.

There was also the fact that he came out of the change horny as __hell__ \- he always did, he'd usually rut into his hand until he'd satisfied the urge, the pent-up everything that came along with the curse - and he couldn't, not with Masayoshi right __there__. He could smell him still, warm and safe and comfortable, and the thought of what he'd wanted to do to him before he climbed out of the bed made the guilt twist in his belly.

(Maybe he __should__. Maybe it would be better if Masayoshi ran now, now that he __knew__ what Gotou really was, before anything more could grow between them….)

Gotou inhaled angrily, and then turned and punched the brick beside him. The pain was a brief flair - his knuckle split and he almost dropped his cigarette. He stood there, breathing wildly, and thought about the fact that for the first time he'd not felt the urge to roam, how he hadn't shown the moon his face, and how remarkably __unafraid__ Masayoshi had been, brushing his hands through Gotou's fur slowly. He had no way of knowing what if any of his faculties that Gotou retained through the change but all the same he trusted Gotou the same in that form as well as in his human one.

Of course he did. This was Masayoshi he was thinking about, and if there was one thing that described Masayoshi it was definitely "idiot."

Now that he'd had at least one cigarette he felt more human, and less like he was going to do something that they'd both regret. Gotou sighed as he tucked the pack away in his jacket pocket, and said - "are you going to lurk there the entire time?"

Masayoshi popped his head around the corner and peered at Gotou. "That's a no-smoking zone," he said accusingly.

"I'm well aware." Gotou put his hands in his pockets and looked at Masayoshi. "You're still wearing the clothes you slept in."

"I didn't bring anything else to wear," he said. "Did you __smell__ me?"

Gotou sighed, a smile tugging at his mouth. "Let's go get breakfast," he said, and Masayoshi straightened. "You're buying."


	2. Chapter 2

"Don't come by tonight," Gotou said when they went to part ways, the morning sun bright in the sky. Masayoshi blinked, and then furrowed his brow – not quite angry, more perplexed. Gotou sighed and took out another cigarette – he'd smoked a lot of them this morning, more than usual (not that Masayoshi had spent many __mornings__ with him, he realized) – and when he lit it he shook his head. "It's the most dangerous tonight," he said, and when Masayoshi scowled, added, "I __mean__ it, 'yoshi. Not tonight. Promise me."

Masayoshi looked at his shoes, brow still furrowed, and finally looked up at Gotou and caught for the first time the flicker of genuine fear that was lurking behind his otherwise normal expression. "Yeah, okay," he said. "I promise. But," he added hastily, before Gotou could expound on that. "I'm coming over tomorrow."

"That's the last night of the full moon," Gotou said, clearly about to continue, and Masayoshi nodded his head.

"You said tonight's the most dangerous, so tomorrow is less, yeah?"

"It's always dangerous," Gotou said quietly, and Masayoshi took a step forward, startling him.

"More or less dangerous than you pointing a loaded gun at me?" Masayoshi asked before he could stop himself.

Gotou physically flinched and he immediately felt bad. "I never would have shot you," Gotou said, refusing to look at him now, eyes on the ground, teeth clamped firmly on the cigarette in his mouth.

"I know that, dummy," Masayoshi poked him in the shoulder. "That's why I put myself there. You won't hurt me."

Gotou closed his eyes and sighed. "You are insufferable, Masayoshi."

"I promised to take care of you, didn't I?" Masayoshi said cheerfully. His cell phone rang in his pocket, and he fished it out. "Ahh, Ishihara-san," he said, eyes flicking to Gotou's, who nodded his head. "I'll see you tomorrow, Gotou-san!"

* * *

He didn't go out that night, fearing that Masayoshi would be on patrol and looking for him. The middle night was always the worst to keep a handle on it, to keep himself __himself__ , he felt the moon in the sky like it was __calling__ to him. It was in his veins, all the way down to the bone, his entire body __thrummed__ with it, with the need to run, to hunt, to __kill__.

He could usually satisfy the urge with a small animal of some kind, a stray cat, a raccoon – it was never truly enough but it had to be. He wasn't a __monster__

(But…)

He couldn't go out. Masayoshi __would__ be out there. And Masayoshi was doing weird things to his internal equilibrium. He'd been there for a while, but there had been no crossover, no carryover from that life as weird as it was, to this, his curse – but now that those two lives were tangled together inextricably, and just the scent of Masayoshi was going to drive him mad. Smoking only dulled that sense so much.

So he paced the length and breadth of his apartment, claws clicking menacingly on the tile floor, back and forth, pent-up with so __much.__ And when the moon set and he curled naked on the cold ground and breathed raggedly into his arm, fist tight around his cock as he tried to release that tension he realized that there was no way Masayoshi would ever be safe around him.

* * *

Two messages on his phone, when he went to look. Hers had come last night, of course – a cheerful message to keep safe and she'd talk to him later – and then one from Masayoshi, way too early in the morning, telling Gotou he'd stop by the koban when he got off work, and he was __staying the night, full stop, don't argue with me gotou-san.__

Gotou caught himself smiling at the phone, and turned it over on the table.


	3. Chapter 3

"Why didn't you tell me you were on leave?" Masayoshi said accusingly when Gotou opened his front door. "Totsuka-san gave me such a __look__ when I asked where you were!"

"Ah," Gotou said guiltily. "I thought you knew." He was on __forced__ leave, in fact, but he didn't like thinking about what was going on, or the mandated evaluation he had to complete before they'd let him back to work. Masayoshi crossed his arms and glared, and Gotou sighed, stepping aside.

He still didn't know what Masayoshi was trying to accomplish with these gestures. So he knew now, so what? It's not like it changed anything – he was bound to the moon. "I brought dinner," Masayoshi said, holding up the plastic bag he held in one hand, and Gotou sighed.

"Not curry?"

Masayoshi's brow furrowed again, thunderclouds gathered. "Something __wrong__ with curry?"

There wasn't particularly, but he was never hungry these night – not until after the shift, when his hunger changed to a need for something else. "Whatever you want, 'yoshi," he said absently, and padded toward the bed.

Masayoshi stood just inside the genkan, shoes still on his feet. "You don't really want me here, do you." It wasn't a question – and the answer should have been plainly obvious as well. Gotou sighed, still standing on his feet, feeling the electricity crawling under his skin as the minutes fell away.

"It's not safe," he said, and turned around.

"I don't care," Masayoshi said stubbornly, heeling his shoes off and padding across the hallway in his socks. He dropped the convenience store bag on the counter but didn't shrug off his knapsack, didn't pull off his jacket, he just crossed the room until he stood at the edge of the table, close but not too close, from Gotou. "I don't __care__ ," he repeated, and Gotou looked away.

"I'll hurt you," Gotou said quietly. "I've hurt people, Masayoshi, I don't want to hurt you too."

"You've," Masayoshi said softly, and Gotou's head snapped up.

"I've not killed anyone," he said hastily, sensing the new fear in Masayoshi's voice. His eyes snapped to Masayoshi's, and even now a few hours before the moon would rise into a twilight sky his eyes had gone strange, not-quite-human – always the first thing to change and the last to revert. He saw Masayoshi flinch, ever so slightly, and swallowed hard. "I've not," he added, because Masayoshi had no cause to believe him.

"Then you don't need to worry about me," Masayoshi said stubbornly.

Gotou sighed heavily, and sat down on the edge of his bed. He rubbed a hand back through his hair, and glanced up at the clock. "You should make dinner, if you want to eat," he said firmly, and Masayoshi stared at him, one hand still tight on the strap of his bag.

"Okay," Masayoshi said, and turned back to the kitchen.

* * *

They sat at his table, the television on – it could be any other night, Masayoshi tucking into a plate of curry while a rerun of some tokusatsu programming was on – but it __wasn't__. He could feel Masayoshi's eyes, staring at him when he thought Gotou wouldn't catch him, although there wasn't so much worry as it was straight curiosity. He'd never asked.

Gotou sighed, his back to the bed. "Three questions," he said finally, although Masayoshi hadn't spoken.

Masayoshi stared at him. "Three?" he said.

"I'll answer three questions," Gotou said. "If it'll get you to stop looking at me like that."

Masayoshi looked over at Gotou's untouched plate of curry, and then back to his face. "You really haven't killed anyone?" he asked cautiously.

"No one human," Gotou said, staring at the television. "That I know about."

"Good," Masayoshi said, sounding relieved.

"You didn't believe me the first time?" Gotou asked, and Masayoshi poked his remaining food with his spoon.

"It's not that I didn't believe you, Gotou-san," he said, and hesitated.

"It's changed the way you feel about me," Gotou said, and Masayoshi started, and looked up at him. He snorted and looked away again. "This is why you're an idiot, you know."

"It hasn't changed __anything__ ," Masayoshi said obstinately. "I love you the same, Gotou-san – there's just more about you I need to learn, now!"

"What would you have done if I said that yes, I __had__ killed someone?" Gotou challenged him, sitting forward, eyes narrowed. Masayoshi flinched again, and Gotou let out a low, exasperated sigh. "You're afraid of me."

"I am __not__ ," Masayoshi said indignantly, immediately.

"Then what would you have done?"

"You're being __mean!"__ Masayoshi said. "You're being aggressive because you're afraid that I'll hate you but you want me to hate you anyway!" He slammed his spoon down on the plate and leaned forward, hands on the table. "It's just like that time when-"

"Don't __say__ this is like a tokusatsu plot, Masayoshi!" Gotou yelled suddenly, and this time, Masayoshi did not flinch.

"I don't hate you," Masayoshi said, filling the sudden silence. "I can't hate you, Gotou-san." He sat back on his knees and lowered his head, staring at his plate. "I don't know what I'd do if you __had__ killed someone, but it wouldn't change my feelings for you."

"How can you be so sure?" Gotou said finally.

"Because I love you," Masayoshi said it so casually, and the words slid like a heated blade between his ribs.

They hadn't talked about __that__ , either, about how Masayoshi was just confused, he __had__ to be confused about it because if he wasn't, how was Gotou meant to deal with it?

"Masayoshi," Gotou said, about to open that can of worms when Masayoshi held up two fingers.

"I get two more questions, you said," he said insistently. Gotou sighed, and nodded his head. "What __have__ you killed then, if not people?"

Gotou blinked, a little surprised. He had expected Masayoshi to go for a bigger question than that. "Small animals, mostly," he said. "I try not to get pets but I'm not always in my right mind-" he scowled at Masayoshi's expression. "You __asked__ , 'yoshi-"

"Do you eat them?" Masayoshi's eyes were wide.

"Usually." Gotou rubbed a hand over his mouth. "When I'm – when I'm like that I get so __hungry__ , and it's not for anything you can buy in a conbini, believe me I've tried. But I'd never hurt a person. No one misses a few stray cats here and there." He exhaled. "I got a deer once, before I moved here."

"Gotou-san, that requires a hunting license."

Gotou stared at Masayoshi. He leaned forward and said, very calmly, "you don't require a __wolf__ to register for a hunting license, Masayoshi."

Masayoshi stared right back at him, and parroted Gotou's words from weeks ago. "There haven't been __wolves__ in Japan for a __hundred years,__ Gotou-san."

He narrowed his eyes at Masayoshi. "You're making fun of me."

"I still get one more question."

"Nope." Gotou held up his fingers. "You asked if I ate them too, that's three."

"What!" Masayoshi crossed his arms. "That's not fair."

The smile quirked across his face before he could stop it. "Maybe next month I'll let you ask more," he said, as he felt pinpricks begin, under his skin – he glanced up at the clock once more, then sat forward, reaching over his back to pull his shirt off. "Don't want to ruin my clothes," he grunted, and surged to his feet, staggering just a little as he headed for the bathroom, to dump them in the hamper before it was too late.

Masayoshi got to his feet and walked both plates of curry into the kitchen area, rinsing the plates in the sink. He waited until he heard impatient clawing at the bathroom door and then he opened it, letting the sleek black animal loose. "You forgot you can't do doorknobs," Masayoshi accused, and the wolf snorted, before hopping up on the bed and turning a circle, settling down in the mess of covers. Masayoshi glanced in the bathroom, saw that his clothes had at least made it into the hamper, and returned to rinsing the dishes.

" _ _Dangerous__ ," he said softly to himself, as the wolf flicked his ears.


	4. oct 18th

"Where are you going?" Gotou asked as Masayoshi busily shuffled around the apartment, locating half the things he'd dumped out of his knapsack the night before. Gotou himself was laying on his stomach on his bed, magazine opened before him.

"Work," Masayoshi said unhappily. "Ishihara-san scheduled meetings for me tonight with, um-" he thought about it for a moment, and sighed deeply. " _ _Politicians.__ "

"And you're going looking like that?" Gotou asked, chin in hand.

Masayoshi looked down at his sweatshirt and jeans, and back up at Gotou, brow furrowed in confusion. "Ishihara-san has people," he said airily. "Most of my clothes got destroyed, remember?"

"Don't remind me." Gotou glanced back down at his magazine, then up at the clock. "I'll walk you part of the way." He sat up and stretched, arching his back as he did so.

"Tonight? But..." Masayoshi looked at the clock as well, concerned.

"It'll be fine," Gotou said, rubbing his own shoulder.

"But what about – your __clothes?__ " Masayoshi stage-whispered, as if anyone else was lurking in the dark corners of Gotou's apartment. Gotou snorted as he got up on his feet, tossing the magazine on the table.

"How long do you think I've been doing this, 'yoshi?"

"I don't know," Masayoshi said sharply. "You won't tell me."

Gotou hesitated, but only for a second. Then he shook his head sharply once as if to clear it, and walked past Masayoshi into the bathroom. Masayoshi sighed as he heard the water start to run, and then ran a hand back through his hair.

* * *

The sun was just starting to set as they left the apartment. "You've got your key," Gotou confirmed for the third time – Masayoshi rolled his eyes and said again, "Yes, Gotou-san. I haven't forgotten it."

Which, to be fair to Gotou he had forgotten it numerous times and had only been rescued by the fact that Gotou was on leave. "Do you want me to prove it?" Masayoshi asked, fishing one hand in his knapsack. Gotou stopped him by holding out his own key. "I'd feel safer if you took this one, too." He hesitated and then stuck his hand in his pocket. "And my wallet, too."

"Had your wallet stolen often?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou looked at him, eyebrow raised, humoring him.

"Is that one of your three?" he asked, and Masayoshi ducked his head and groaned.

"Does it __have__ to be?" He'd asked questions throughout the month, small ones here and there hoping to dig more into the foundation that made Gotou __Gotou__ , but Gotou was apparently too savvy for that. Mostly.

They waited for the light to change at the intersection before crossing – Gotou had put on sunglasses even though the daylight had mostly faded, in part to hide the gold color that now tinged his eyes. "Nah," he said. "I won't count it. Just a few times; I've almost always gotten my clothes back."

"Do you want me to take your clothes, too?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou shook his head.

"You don't intend to come back tonight," Masayoshi said quietly, and Gotou didn't react to his words, looking instead at the sky. He pulled out his pack of cigarettes and lit one, and Masayoshi shoved him in the shoulder.

"Gotou- _ _san__!"

"I don't care if it's a no-smoking zone, I need it," Gotou said and ignored the angry huff that came from Masayoshi.

"I'm gonna sleep in your bed if you're not coming home," Masayoshi threatened, and Gotou shrugged loosely. He didn't take the cigarette out of his mouth.

"Suit yourself."

Masayoshi sputtered a little, and Gotou took a step away, separating his personal space from Masayoshi's. "Speaking of which, I've got to go," he said. He hesitated, putting out the cigarette he had just started to smoke. "I'll … try to be back before dawn, but no promises, okay?"

"Okay," Masayoshi said sullenly. Gotou quirked a smile, still hesitating, as if thinking about something else he should do before they parted company, but changed his mind, ducking his head and heading off down the sidewalk at a hurried pace. Masayoshi lingered through the light cycle, watching Gotou disappear into the pedestrian crowd, his heart and his stomach both sour.

* * *

The apartment was dark and cold when he returned late that night, the chill heavy in the late October air. Masayoshi unlocked the door (using Gotou's key, he would not admit that no, he couldn't find his in his knapsack and he was going to empty it out and __look__ for it, because he treasured that damn key and the meaning behind it) and then set Gotou's wallet and keys on the counter, next to his phone.

Masayoshi's hand hesitated, then he picked up the dark phone.

Gotou didn't seem to be mailing as much any more – he did still do it, but not with the frequency that he had. He'd also stopped talking about her entirely, now that the secret was out, but Masayoshi __knew__ he still did. And he was curious. But this was a huge breach of trust to do it, and he wavered several moments before touching the screen, to light up the menu.

The phone had a lock screen. Masayoshi sighed, relieved, and set the phone down – then immediately felt guilty he had intended to snoop. Gotou was holding a lot back from him, though – he wanted to know so much about him, about his curse, about his girlfriend – all of it. The good __and__ the bad.

He wandered into the main room of the apartment. It was __weird__ being here without Gotou. Since he was on leave (paid, __medical__ technically, although they were requiring him to do a full mental evaluation before they'd allow him back on regular duty) he was almost always home whenever Masayoshi got in. He smiled a lot more easily now, Masayoshi had noticed, although that first week after he'd moved his three duffle bags worth of belongings in and made a nest in the closet had been ... difficult.

He flopped onto the bed, and buried his face in the pillow. It smelled like Gotou, when Gotou allowed him to be close, when he would let Masayoshi slide under his arm so they could watch television side by side, curled under the same blanket. Masayoshi closed his eyes and thought, __please let me in, Gotou-san.__

 _ _Please.__

As he drowsed off, wrapped in the blankets that smelled just like the man he loved, he thought he heard the faintest keening of a howl in the distance.


	5. oct 19th

The bed shifted. Masayoshi drowsily lifted his head as he felt the mattress move, and when he squinted open his eyes it was to Gotou, leaning over him, hands on either side of his shoulders.

"What," Gotou asked, "are you doing in my bed?"

Masayoshi stared up at him. Gotou's hair was spiked funny, like he'd slept as well – the room was lit by daylight, he'd forgotten to set his alarm again. He reached up and gently touched Gotou's face – and Gotou flinched back, just slightly.

"Don't," he said gruffly, and moved away, his shadow and presence shifting away from Masayoshi as he sat on the edge of the mattress, back to him. Masayoshi himself sat up, tangled still in the covers and wearing the clothes he'd worn last night.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, and yawned. He rubbed his eye and squinted at the clock on the wall behind the bed. "How long have you been back? Your eyes are normal."

Gotou fished a cigarette out and then patted his pockets, looking for a lighter. Masayoshi surged forward and pressed himself against Gotou's back, arms over his shoulders, and he felt Gotou go completely still.

"Don't smoke indoors, Gotou-san," he said indignantly.

"Masayoshi," Gotou said, his tone uneven. He sat forward and tried to disengage, but Masayoshi had perfected his limpet impersonation and he wasn't going anywhere. "Don't – seriously, not right now, I can't-"

"Can't what?" Masayoshi said, still sleepy. He sat his chin on his arm, still draped over Gotou's shoulder.

Gotou let out a snarl – Masayoshi started, but then Gotou moved, quicker than Masayoshi had anticipated. He ended up flat on his back in the tangle of covers, Gotou straddling him, hands pinning Masayoshi's wrists to the bed beside his head. Gotou lowered his head, so his face was too-close to Masayoshi's, and his eyes were – not like they were when he was still in the transition, but they were definitely not normal – he exhaled a noise that wasn't quite a growl.

" _ _Don't,__ " he said, his voice gone to gravel.

Masayoshi's eyes had gone wide – there was a spark of fear behind them, now, chest rising and falling rapidly, his breath rattling about in his lungs like he'd run a marathon.

Gotou's face lowered just a hair more, his nose brushed Masayoshi's – and then he was gone, up and off the bed. Masayoshi sat up on his elbows as bathroom door slammed violently – and then when the water started running he dropped onto his back again and covered his mouth with one hand, eyes still wide.

* * *

 _ _What was__ that?

Gotou locked the bathroom door behind him. He turned the sink on and stared at himself in the mirror for a long moment, before putting his back to the bathroom door and sliding down into a seated position. He'd almost, just-

He put his hands on either side of his head, elbows on his knees, and tried unsuccessfully to will away the erection. The entire apartment stank like Masayoshi now – his bed wasn't exactly a __refuge__ , but the sight of Masayoshi sleep-addled and drowsy in his __bed__... that was just __unfair.__

The water from the faucet would disguise the noise, but he still hesitated to touch himself. Masayoshi was just out there, he could smell him getting stronger, he'd gotten out of bed and was standing outside the door to the bathroom. Gotou closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the door, imagining Masayoshi standing on the other side, debating whether or not to knock.

In the end, he didn't knock.

Masayoshi's scent grew lesser. He'd walked away. Gotou rubbed his hand over his crotch, pressing firmly, and then hauled himself up, turned the sink off and started to strip. He'd take care of this, then he'd shower, and he'd feel as close to normal as he did during this time of the month, at least.

When he emerged, finally – it was to an empty apartment. Gotou's stomach dropped, until he saw a note sitting on the counter by his dark phone. - __Went for a run. I'll bring back breakfast!__

* * *

Gotou took his phone back to the bed – Masayoshi had made it, but – his scent was strong. Gotou pulled his cigarettes out again and this time lit one, sitting with his back to the wall. Tonight was going to be __worse__ , he barely had a handle on things __now.__ And he couldn't focus when Masayoshi looked at him like that, through half-closed eyes with tousled hair, smelling like warmth and sunshine... he tilted his head back against the wall. Dammit, he shouldn't be __hard__ again, he usually only had to get off once after he changed back.

He __knew__ letting Masayoshi move in with him was a bad idea, but he'd still opened his stupid mouth when Masayoshi had been griping about the hotel, how impersonal it was – he'd said, __like a dumbass__ , "well, why don't you stay with me until you find a new place?" When Masayoshi had lit up like a neon sign Gotou remembered that yes, several beers did impair his judgment in very tragic ways, and where exactly was he going to __put__ Masayoshi?

In the closet, it turned out, where Masayoshi made a nest for himself on the shelf Mari lived on for a few weeks, months ago, and … well, he hadn't had a problem up until today.

Gotou inhaled the smoke, felt it burn in his lungs – it only masked the scents, at least until after the full moon – but it was enough. He exhaled, slowly, and watched the smoke rise through the sunlight that crept through the blinds.

Masayoshi unlocked the door and paused in the genkan, wearing his running pants and a tee shirt. "You're not supposed to smoke inside!" he said, latching the apartment door behind him. "Gotou-san, that's bad for your health!"

" _ _You're__ bad for my health," Gotou said.

Masayoshi tossed him a cold can of coffee as he entered the room. Gotou caught it and looked at it. "This is breakfast?" he said, and Masayoshi put his hands on his hips and stared at him.

"What was that about?" he asked.

"We're doing the questions now?" Gotou responded, putting out his cigarette.

"No," Masayoshi said. "This isn't about – __that__ , and you know it."

"It is," Gotou said quietly, and looked at the coffee can. "I told you, you're not safe around me when I'm like this."

"Bullshit," Masayoshi said, and Gotou's head snapped up, surprised. "If I wasn't, something would have happened."

"Something just __happened__ ," Gotou said, hackles rising.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said patiently. "That's called foreplay."

Gotou turned a solid shade of pink. "That's – no it's __not__ , Masayoshi don't make fun-" Pink slid into red. "How do you even __know__ -"

"I'm inexperienced, I'm not __stupid__." Masayoshi looked away, in the direction of the television, and Gotou had the unsettling mental image that all of Masayoshi's ideas of romance probably came from the shows he consumed.

"Yes, you __are__ ," Gotou said, and Masayoshi's head snapped back to him.

"You're mean," Masayoshi said. He walked to the bed, put a knee on the mattress and Gotou stiffened. "I know you like me, Gotou-san, why are you so stubborn about this?"

"Because," Gotou said. "You __will__ get hurt." He looked away. "And you're conflating my moon-lust with other things."

"It's more than that." Kneeling on the mattress now, in front of him – sweat drying on his skin still from the run, eyes determined like he always was, and Gotou felt like he had swallowed something that burned in his throat. Masayoshi touched his face gently, and he had nowhere to go, his back to the wall. "Isn't it?"

It was Masayoshi who kissed him, gentle and soft – and Gotou let him, eyes closed. He was inexperienced, yes, he hesitated before he withdrew and Gotou seized that opportunity, surged forward and kissed him again. Masayoshi put his arms over Gotou's shoulders, sitting on his knees between Gotou's legs, and they kept kissing, desperate and needy, teeth clacking together upon occasion.

"Masayoshi," Gotou groaned when he ducked back just slightly, breathing hard, face red. "We – we __can't__ -"

"If you say it's __dangerous__ one more time," Masayoshi heaved, brow furrowed.

"Yes, but not-" Gotou took a deep gulp of air, tried to quell the feeling surging inside. "It's the moon-lust, okay? We have to wait until after-"

"You're not going to hurt me, Gotou-san."

"Yes, I __am__ ," Gotou said, hands on Masayoshi's face. "I hurt __myself__ , sometimes, this isn't me worrying about you because of something I __think__ will happen, I __know__ it will – you're tearing my self-control to shreds by just existing, you know?"

Masayoshi tilted his head in. "I'm not afraid."

"I know," Gotou said. "But I am."


	6. oct 20th

Gotou raised his head a split second before the door unlocked. He'd been sitting at the low table, his laptop open as he scrolled through a forum board trying to combat his boredom until Masayoshi and his irregular schedule came home – but as the door opened Gotou wrinkled his nose and scowled. "What the hell is __that?"__ he asked as Masayoshi shuffled in, looking tired. "Why do you smell like – is that __bubblegum?__ "

"I don't want to talk about it," Masayoshi said wearily.

"You __stink.__ "

"Thank you," he said dryly, hanging his coat and brushing the fine mist from his hair. It had been precipitating throughout the day, cloudy and gray – a proper chilly late autumn landscape. "It's getting even colder out, do you think it'll snow soon?"

"Nah." Gotou closed his laptop. "It's still too warm in the atmosphere, when it gets ready to snow there's this sharpness in the air-" he looked up to see Masayoshi staring at him, a large grin on his face, and Gotou scowled. "You're making fun of me again," he said crossly.

"I'm not, it's cool!" Masayoshi hummed a little visible through the doorway in the kitchen area. "My boyfriend has superpowers."

"It's not – don't call it that," Gotou said, hauling himself to his feet. "And I'm not your boyfriend."

Masayoshi paused, and took a step back so he could make eye contact with Gotou. "You're not?" He looked genuinely confused, and a bit concerned – Gotou sighed as he put the computer up.

"We're – I don't think we're there yet, 'yoshi."

"So when do I get to call you my boyfriend?" Masayoshi stood in the doorway, a packet of instant curry in his hands. "Do I have to wait until we've had sex, or-?"

The only reason the laptop didn't get dropped was because Gotou had __just__ set it down. Of __course__ he'd thought about it, it was hard not to when every time he was jerking himself off all he could think about was Masayoshi – but actually __taking__ that step was a different matter. "I'm not ready for that," he said instead, and Masayoshi nodded his head.

"You're still my boyfriend, though," he said, and Gotou sighed, a deeply exasperated noise.

 **" _ _Fine__ , Masayoshi."**

Masayoshi lit up, grinning again.

* * *

"Are you going to stay in tonight?" Masayoshi asked, eating hungrily. Gotou picked at his plate this time, clearly making an effort but not all that hungry. "It's supposed to rain the rest of the night. That can't be pleasant."

"It doesn't bother me," Gotou said. "Cold doesn't really either, it's kind of nice."

"Mm," Masayoshi said. "I bet it's fun."

There was something speculative about Masayoshi's words that chilled Gotou to the bone. "It's not. It's really not."

Masayoshi pushed some of his curry around on the plate, chasing bits with his spoon. "Why not?"

"That's one," Gotou said softly, and Masayoshi looked up while chewing. "You don't know, it's like – every time I'm afraid I'm not going to wake up until morning, that I'm going to wake up in a pile of viscera and blood and only know that I've hurt someone." He put his spoon down, what little remained of his appetite was gone.

"You haven't, though." Masayoshi said.

Gotou was silent, staring at his plate.

"Gotou-san?" Masayoshi asked tentatively, his own spoon left overturned.

"Sorry," Gotou said, and got to his feet, plate in his hands. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"You are gonna stay in tonight though, right?" Masayoshi asked as he watched Gotou walk through the door that divided the apartment. "I mean, the apartment'll smell like wet dog otherwise."

There was a moment's pause, and then Gotou leaned through the divider. "Oi."

"Well, it __would.__ "

"I am not a __dog.__ "

"Okay, then it will be wet-wolf smell, and I bet that's all but indistinguishable from wet-dog smell."

"You smell like bubblegum, you don't have any room to talk right now." Gotou disappeared back into the kitchen to rinse his plate.

"I do not. I've had like three showers." Masayoshi sniffed his arm just in case.

"What the hell happened, anyway?"

"I don't want to talk about it," Masayoshi said grimly, and he heard Gotou snicker.

Masayoshi picked his spoon back up and resumed eating thoughtfully. They fell into comfortable silences now and again – and the fact that Gotou had laughed, even a little, made Masayoshi just a bit content. He looked up when Gotou walked back in the room, and he sat down on the edge of the bed and scratched the back of his neck.

"I still have two questions," Masayoshi reminded him, and Gotou let out a large sigh.

"Yeah, okay," he said.

"Do you know any other werewolves?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou blinked. He raised his head and squinted, and Masayoshi didn't think it was that difficult a question to answer. "Or have you encountered any others?" he tacked on, hoping for an elaboration.

"I've run across a couple," Gotou said. "But I didn't know any of them."

"They weren't friendly?" Masayoshi asked.

"No," Gotou said.

"Huh. If I was a werewolf I'd try to find a whole bunch of other werewolves so we could be friends," Masayoshi said, and Gotou sighed again, but it was tinged with amusement.

"That's not how it works," he said. "That's not really how any of this works. It's a nice thought, though."

"How does it work, then?"

"Ah," Gotou said, and held up three fingers. "You've already asked three."

"I have not!"

"You have." Gotou ticked them off. "The one about it being fun, the one about knowing other wolves, and whether or not they're friendly."

"Oh." Masayoshi puffed out his cheeks. "Why won't you answer __more__ than that?"

"Maybe later," Gotou said, and rubbed his hand over the bridge of his nose. "Not tonight." When he lifted his hand, Masayoshi could see the change in his eyes, small but significant.

"Put your clothes in the hamper," Masayoshi reminded him, and Gotou said, slightly offended, "I'm not getting naked __now,__ Masayoshi!"

Masayoshi made a disappointed noise, and grinned when Gotou turned the slightest bit pink.

* * *

Later, when Masayoshi was sitting with his back against the bed, flipping through the channels looking for something to watch, he remarked idly, "Mari threw a bottle of some perfume or something at me thinking I'd catch it."

He felt the bed shift behind him, and he didn't have to turn around to look to know that the wolf – __Gotou, it's still Gotou –__ had lifted his head, ears up. "It hit me in the head," Masayoshi said, touching his hand to the top of his head - and managed not to jump when he felt Gotou's breath against his hair. There was the brief brush of a wet nose and then and amused snuffling noise, before the wolf settled back on the bed – and now, when Masayoshi looked behind him, he was curled so he could see the television.

Gotou's eye flicked over to him, golden and framed in dark fur – and there really wasn't a word for the emotion that settled over Masayoshi right then.

He swallowed, and turned back around.


	7. nov 16th

The terrain was muddy – it had been raining off and on for days, cold bitter rain, mocking him – but it didn't slow him down. The search team had been through this patch of wooded area half a dozen times, it wasn't far from where the bus was found abandoned, it was the first place anyone looked but he knew there had to be something, __somewhere__. People didn't just disappear, they didn't cease to be like someone had plucked them from the fabric of existence. There was evidence, and he would __find it.__

The light was all wrong, it hadn't been daylight – he remembered this, remembered the quagmire of mud he had almost lost a shoe to, remembered how the wind sounded through the naked branches, cast in sickly shadow when the moon emerged from behind the clouds. It was cast in warm tones now, pink and misty, and he realized, detached – __oh, a dream.__

That didn't mean he had any more control here – when he heard the woman scream, from back on the road he turned on his heel instantly. It wasn't _ _her__ voice but he reacted all the same, he ran toward the noise, toward the danger – and saw the dog gone rabid standing over the body, the woman backing away, screaming still at the blood running down the beast's jaw.

He swung his book bag like a weapon, thought about throwing it but his motion caught the dog's attention. It was larger than any dog he'd ever seen, and he knew now – __not a dog at all__ – but it wouldn't change things, it never changed them.

 _ _You can't change what's already happened.__

He came up from the dream fighting, Masayoshi's hands on his arms already, trying to hold him, or something – he was still adrenaline-shot, in that moment the flash of fangs tore open his arm, and he managed to throw Masayoshi off him.

 _ _Fight.__

Teeth bared, fingers curled, he turned on Masayoshi – who kicked him square in the jaw, still on the mattress somehow. The impact caused Gotou's mouth to snap closed hard enough it felt like he cracked a tooth.

He laid on his back on the floor, completely dazed, and stared up at the ceiling.

Masayoshi leaned cautiously over the edge of the mattress, hair wild and eyes wide. They stared at each other for a long moment, Gotou's chest heaving, Masayoshi uncertain, before Gotou rubbed his jaw gingerly and sat up.

"Are you okay, Gotou-san?" Masayoshi asked uncertainly.

"No," Gotou said, and started to laugh.

* * *

Masayoshi held Gotou's face still, hands gentle. Gotou had one eye closed as Masayoshi brushed his thumb over the bruise, already well on its merry way to purple. "I got you good," he said softly. "I'm sorry, Gotou-san."

"Don't be," Gotou said. "It was my fault." He wanted to add on what he'd been saying for weeks, for __months__ now, but Masayoshi wouldn't listen, stubborn fucking idiot that he was. He'd pretty much __attacked__ Masayoshi, half asleep, and here he was in Gotou's personal space as if he hadn't a care in the world.

"You were having a nightmare." Masayoshi sat back on his knees. He'd brought a towel soaked in cold water, the best he could do without ice in the freezer, and Gotou had humored him by putting the towel on his jaw. "It was bad, Gotou-san. What was it about?"

Gotou looked away. "I don't want to talk about it," he said.

"Was it someone you hurt?"

"No!" Gotou pushed Masayoshi away, so he wasn't touching him any more. His heart was still beating fast in his chest – the adrenaline mostly worn down, but the fear, he could still see the blood-flecked jaw as the creature sank its teeth into his __arm-__

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said softly, and Gotou jerked violently when Masayoshi touched his arm.

Gotou wrapped his arms over his chest and leaned forward. "I don't want to talk about it," he said again, eyes squeezed shut. He flinched again, but not as badly, when Masayoshi put his arms over Gotou's shoulders, sitting up on his knees, and pulling Gotou close to him.

"Then don't," Masayoshi said into his hair. Gotou inhaled a deep breath, his face pressed to Masayoshi's collarbone – and then he exhaled and let out an amused noise.

"...what's so funny?" Masayoshi asked carefully.

"Why are you aroused?" Gotou asked, and Masayoshi went stock-still.

"I'm __not-__ " Masayoshi started to say, and then shifted around. "Oh."

Gotou started laughing again, and Masayoshi made a horrified noise. "It's just morning wood, Gotou-san, I'm not getting off on this, you're a _ _pervert__ -"

Gotou laughed harder, and tugged on the back of the tee shirt Masayoshi wore to bed. He leaned his head back and looked up at Masayoshi, who had turned bright red. "The least you could do is kiss me, before you start poking me with that thing," he said, and Masayoshi turned an even _ _brighter__ shade of red.

"I bet __you're__ hard too," Masayoshi said.

"Bet I'm not," Gotou said.

"How could you even __tell__ , you weren't even __touching me__ -" Masayoshi said, and then stopped. "Oh god, you can smell it."

"Full moon's tonight," Gotou reminded him. Masayoshi glowered at him, and pushed him away, setting back down on his haunches.

"Gotou-san, you __are__ a pervert," he said.

"Aw," Gotou murmured. "I didn't even ask you to suck mine."

Masayoshi turned brilliantly red, this time all the way down his neck. " _ _What?"__ he screeched, and Gotou leaned forward and delicately kissed the tip of his nose, completely amused and the high-pitched incoherent noise that Masayoshi made in response.

"Let's go back to bed," he said. "I can help you with that, if you want-"

"NO!" Masayoshi yelped, surging to his feet. He pinwheeled his arms comically in place for a moment, before rushing off to the bathroom, the door slamming behind him. Gotou laughed again despite himself, and then he rubbed his arm, the wound long since healed. His chin hurt, but the bruise would be gone before nightfall.

* * *

Masayoshi crawled back into bed with him some time later, hair damp. "Did you seriously take a shower after jerking off?" Gotou asked drowsily, smelling his own body wash on Masayoshi. "And you used my stuff again, too."

"I thought it was cool when you did that at first," Masayoshi said. "Now it's just creepy."

"Too bad," Gotou wrapped his arms around Masayoshi, pulling him back against Gotou. "You proposed to __me__ , remember?"

"Yeah," Masayoshi said softly. After a long moment's pause he said, even softer - "You know you can tell me about it, right? Whatever your dream was about?"

"I know."

"Okay." Masayoshi exhaled. "Sorry I kicked you."

"Go back to sleep," Gotou murmred.

"Love you, Gotou-san," Masayoshi murmured.

"Yeah," Gotou said. "Me too."


	8. nov 17th

"Hey, your bruise is gone," Masayoshi said when Gotou emerged from the bathroom, still slightly damp from his bath. He snagged a drink from the mini-fridge under the counter and dropped himself into a seated position opposite Masayoshi at the table.

"Yeah, didn't I tell you?" he said as he popped the tab on the beer can. "Injuries an' shit heal real quick this time of the month." He took a long pull from the can and let out a contented noise. "Mm, cold beer after a hot bath, is there anything better?"

"I can think of a few things," Masayoshi muttered, and Gotou cocked his head. Masayoshi could almost superimpose the alert ears in his hair, and he grinned despite himself, ducking his head and looking back down at the papers he had spread on out on the table.

"What are you working on?" Gotou asked, and Masayoshi gave an exaggerated sigh.

"I have an __interview__ , _"_ he said it like it was a dirty word. Gotou chuckled.

"You've given interviews before, 'yoshi."

"Yeah, well, doing variety shows is different than this. They're gonna ask questions about platforms and policy and __I don't wanna do this.__ " He blew out his breath and groaned. "I just want to tell everyone to forget it, I don't need the position, carry on."

"Why don't you?" Gotou pulled one of the papers out of Masayoshi's pile, and Masayoshi squawked.

"Don't! Now they're all out of order, Gotou-san!"

"I think you'll manage," he said, and squinted at the details. "Jeez, you'd have to speak at the __U.N.?__ Maybe it is a good idea to just throw in the towel now."

"Ishihara-san thinks that it's better for everyone if I decline the position once the election is over, since no one is running against me there's no one who can claim the title," Masayoshi said. "We don't want some super villain to decide to insert himself into the election process to claim the title 'president of the world.'"

"I thought the Will of the Universe told you there'd be peace now," Gotou set the paper down on the table. "Don't you believe it?"

"Of course I do!" Masayoshi said indignantly. "But at the end of the first season the hero is ALWAYS told his work is done, but in the second season a new threat emerges! I must be vigilant!"

Gotou snorted. "I sincerely doubt that a super villain's going to emerge to take over a political position that is 99% figurehead and 175% paperwork."

" _ _Still__." Masayoshi said fervently.

"Besides," Gotou said, and grinned a grin full of slightly too-sharp teeth. "What if __I'm__ your new threat?"

Masayoshi looked up at him, brow furrowed. "But you're not?"

"Oi," he said. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, you're not a __threat__ , Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, matter-of-fact. When he saw Gotou's face darken, he backpedaled slightly. "You're dangerous, of course, but you're not-" he paused, and squinted at Gotou. "You're not __evil.__ "

Gotou sighed dramatically and hooked his arms back on the mattress, hanging he head back. "At least figure out if someone is __evil__ before you start sleeping in their bed," Gotou said, and Masayoshi snorted.

"Are you trying to tell me you're evil, Gotou-san?" When Gotou looked up at him, Masayoshi was trying very hard to keep a straight face.

He kept his voice low. "I __can__ be."

Masayoshi was unimpressed. "It's harder to be good than to be evil," he said. "And you are a werewolf who fights for justice!"

"Oh my god," Gotou said.

"You simply can't be evil," Masayoshi said with a firm nod.

"Okay, never say that again," Gotou pointed his can at Masayoshi, and Masayoshi frowned.

"Why not?"

"Because – because I don't like mixing __that__ with the rest of my life," Gotou said. "I work very hard to keep that separate, and-"

"Why?" Masayoshi asked, interrupting. Gotou scowled at him, and Masayoshi blinked. "It's an important part of you, Gotou-san."

Gotou held his eye for a long moment – then he looked away, toward the dark television set. "You wouldn't understand," he said instead. "It's not something I asked for."

"Maybe not," Masayoshi said. "But it's still who you are. You're still Gotou-san if you're here with me on two legs or four."

He sighed, but smiled. "Your earnestness will be the death of me," he said, and hauled himself to his feet. Masayoshi watched him stretch his arms over his head and pop his back.

"Where are you going? The moon doesn't rise for a while yet."

"For a walk," Gotou said. He stopped beside Masayoshi, leaned down and put his hands on Masayoshi's shoulders, burying his face in Masayoshi's hair. Masayoshi held still, felt Gotou take a big inhale, and then he kissed the top of Masayoshi's head. "I probably won't be back before the moon rises, leave the door unlocked for me if you go to bed, okay?"

"Okay," Masayoshi said. "It's supposed to snow. Be safe, Gotou-san."

* * *

The shift itself was never painful, not anymore – it happened so quickly he'd gotten used to it. When he had first turned, it was agonizing – but he hadn't understood it. He'd left his clothes folded, in a plastic bag stashed under some bushes. It was a place he used often, it was rarely disturbed.

Masayoshi __didn't__ understand.

It was going to snow, but not until well after midnight – there was an occasional snowflake in the air but the clouds weren't right, not just yet. Gotou lay on the ground in the park, obscured by shadow and brush, and watched a couple of delinquent teenagers play on the swings. They didn't notice him, he was too far hidden in shadow and besides – he'd had years of practice, not being noticed.

The problem was that Masayoshi had wormed his way under Gotou's skin in a way that he hadn't felt comfortable with at first and now he was certain he couldn't live without. The therapist he was mandated to see as part of his evaluation had even noticed it, commenting that Gotou looked happier and more relaxed and the fact that Masayoshi affected him __so much__ really worried him.

Especially given how close he'd come to hurting Masayoshi, clawing himself to wakefulness from a nightmare of his own past. Masayoshi couldn't defend himself against Gotou, if it came down to it. Not when he was like __that.__

What was he going to do?

 _ _She__ had told him he needed to be more honest with himself. Gotou laid his head down across his paws, watching the teenagers. One had stood up on the swing and was still swinging, laughing loudly – and he thought about how many times he and Masayoshi had sat on those same swings. He huffed, making a snorting sound into the ground.

 _ _You need to tell him the truth, gocchin,__ the latest message had said. __He loves you. He'll understand.__

Suddenly, all the fur along his spine started prickling. Gotou lifted his head suddenly, ears swiveling as he did so. There was nothing to see in the park but the teenagers, however when he craned his head back he could see the sky, and the fast-moving clouds that would bring the heavy snow later tonight. Just enough had cleared that the bottom of the moon, heavy and full emerged – and as its light spilled past the cloud cover he heard it, the vibrant melody muted by its distance but unmistakable.

The howl of a wolf.


	9. nov 18th

Masayoshi woke up when Gotou climbed over him. He rolled, and yawned as Gotou ducked his head in low and inhaled, dripping ice-cold water from his hair. "Hey!" Masayoshi yelped. "You're __soaked-__ "

Gotou kissed him suddenly, aggressive, and Masayoshi gasped a little against him. He wormed his arm out from under the covers, his hand on Gotou's neck, keeping him down as they kissed hungrily, his drowsiness gone. "Gotou-san," Masayoshi gasped when Gotou pulled back slightly, panting loudly.

"Masayoshi," Gotou said his name almost like a prayer, his voice not quite normal – he was naked, Masayoshi realized, naked and drenched through and very much aroused. He knew how hard Gotou got after he changed back, pumped through with hormones – but he would usually lock himself in the bathroom to take care of it. His eyes were still gold, they caught the dim light and glittered, inhuman. " _ _Please,__ " Gotou groaned, and pressed his hips down onto the covers over Masayoshi's body.

Masayoshi's breath stuttered a bit, because he can feel how hard Gotou is, the warmth dragging against his hip through the heavy comforter, and he gripped the back of Gotou's head, held him still and swallowed. He __wants__ , and it feels like lava churned in his belly. "Not like this," he almost choked on the words, jagged like broken glass in his throat.

Gotou moaned, one arm braced on the pillow beside Masayoshi's head. His other hand wrapped around himself, squeezing tight – and oh god, Masayoshi's so __hard__ , watching down his body as he rocked into his hand. "I want you," Gotou groaned, the words spilling out mindlessly, his eyes locked on Masayoshi's. "Please, __please,__ 'yoshi-"

"Not like this," Masayoshi repeated, both hands on Gotou's head now, forcing him to keep looking at Masayoshi as he stroked himself. "We can, we __can__ , just not-"

He angled his hips slightly under Gotou's weight, trying to shift and Gotou rutted down at the same time, right into his lower belly.

Masayoshi is not awake enough to cope.

The covers are already damp with Gotou's fluid as he dragged himself over Masayoshi's lower body – his hair isn't dripping with the same frequency, it's sweat rolling down his jaw.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi's voice is raspy – Gotou is rocking between his legs now, and through his underwear, through the covers he is pressing his cock against Masayoshi's. There is no true friction, just pressure and warmth but Masayoshi knows what that pressure is, what the length is and everything else has shut down in his mind, all of it – Gotou isn't even squeezing himself anymore, both hands braced on pillow on either side of Masayoshi's head.

They keep kissing, devouring each other's breath as Gotou rocks himself to orgasm between Masayoshi's legs. Masayoshi doesn't let him go, that hand still on the back of his neck, keeping him low as he felt Gotou's entire body go tense. Masayoshi stared up into Gotou's face as he came, watched the pleasure ripple over him, and said softly, "holy shit."

* * *

"Did you come home __naked__?" Masayoshi asked, rubbing Gotou's head aggressively with the towel. Gotou made an unhappy sleepy noise, but Masayoshi was relentless. "That is __horrible__ , Gotou-san, you are an officer of the law you should not be running around __naked__ -"

Gotou emerged finally from under the towel. "You don't get to lecture me about running around naked," he said.

"Once! I did that __once__ , and for good reason-"

"Two times."

"That was in my apartment, Gotou-san, it doesn't count, that isn't public indecency."

"Corruption of a minor then," Gotou said smugly. "That little shit was there, how is that any bett-" his face was muffled as Masayoshi smothered him in the towel again, rubbing vigorously. Gotou made a distressed noise and flailed his arm out, trying in vain to smack Masayoshi.

Masayoshi stopped scrubbing at Gotou's likely-dry hair, but kept his hands on the towel. "Is it always like that?" he asked quietly.

Gotou caught the towel and pulled it down. "Yeah," he said. "I can usually control it, but you smelled – different, tonight, even better than usual and-" he looked away, eyes down. "I'm sorry."

Masayoshi leaned forward and put his arms over Gotou's shoulders. "I didn't dislike it," he said softly, and Gotou flushed red.

"Please don't encourage me," Gotou groaned. "I have enough problems with self-control coming out of the change as it is, you smelled __so good__ tonight, and I don't know why."

Masayoshi rubbed the back of his head. "Do I still smell good?"

"Not as much," Gotou murmured. "It's muted, now."

He nuzzled the side of Gotou's face, and kissed his temple. "Where did you leave your clothes?" he asked, and straightened. Gotou rubbed his face with one hand.

"In a usual spot, I'll go get them once the sun's up proper," he said, as Masayoshi started pulling the covers off the bed. "What are you doing?"

"Your spunk is all over the top cover," Masayoshi said. "And I maybe … messed underneath. __You__ get to do laundry today, Mr-Couldn't-Hold-It-In." He pushed the pile of blankets onto the floor, and then looked back at Gotou. "Every time, huh?"

"It didn't used to be so intense," Gotou said. He rubbed his hand over his bare chest, and then stood up himself, headed for the closet for a shirt and the spare sheets.

"What changed?" Masayoshi asked idly.

"You really have to ask?"

Masayoshi stopped what he was doing, and looked back at Gotou, who was staring at him. He turned pink. "Oh," he said, and looked away.

* * *

It wasn't as if there was some kind of Werewolf Network that Gotou could access, to find the origin of the other howl he had heard. He spent the early afternoon on his laptop researching all the same – because you never know what you can find if you dig around on the deep net sometimes.

"You're still on your laptop?" Masayoshi asked when he came in, late afternoon sunlight creeping through the open door along with the blast of cold air. "What are you looking for?"

Gotou closed his laptop and looked over at Masayoshi. "Nothing important," he said, and Masayoshi furrowed his brow.

"If you say it's nothing important, it probably is." Masayoshi said. "I want to help!"

"I don't know if you can." Gotou said, and leaned back. "I think I heard another wolf, last night-"

" _ _Another__ werewolf!?" Masayoshi sounded way too excited. "Do you have any idea where they were at? Maybe we can track sightings online, is that what you were trying to do? I wonder what they're like-"

"Masayoshi," Gotou said firmly, cutting off Masayoshi's ramble mid-stream. "The cycle's almost over for me – and some wolves only turn on the apex moon, not all three nights." He neglected to mention that the ones who only turned the one night were the ones to be most feared, who kept no mind but that of a killer's. "I don't know anything at all, it could have even been an actual wolf-dog for all I know, the howl was too far away for me to triangulate."

"But you __heard__ one," Masayoshi. "There's one out there, closer than we thought!"

"That's not necessarily a __good__ thing," Gotou tried to reason with him.

"Well, we'll see what happens when we find them," Masayoshi said, cheerful as ever. "Did you get the washing done? You're staying in tonight, it's nice and warm sleeping next to a giant furry space heater."

Gotou sighed, amused, and opened his laptop again. "We'll see."


	10. dec 16th

Darkness blossomed early in the winter, making for very long nights. Masayoshi lingered in the aisle of the conbini, looking between bags of chips, and weighed Gotou getting narky at him for buying one each of all the flavors over just getting the usual. Each one had a different member of the Celestial Neon Sigma team on it, and – he __needed it.__ But that was for later, when they had a bigger place so that Masayoshi could expand and start a new collection.

Of course, he probably should let Gotou in on the fact that Masayoshi was intending for __both__ of them to move, because Gotou seemed quite content in his small apartment. Masayoshi settled on one of the flavors with a Celestial Sigma Neon team member on it and stuck it in his basket.

He knew he was running late – he'd called Gotou's phone from the meeting room, and when it rang out to voicemail he wasn't surprised. He left a message anyway, out of habit – __sorrysorrysorry i'm just really late i'll be home soon –__ even though he knew logically Gotou wouldn't get it until morning, when he'd see the missed call.

"Do you and Gotou-kun have any plans for the holidays?" Ishihara had asked idly as they finished up – Masayoshi's modeling contract would overlap with his new political career ("I don't want to be a politician!" "Doesn't seem like you have much choice _ _.__ ") and Ishihara had self-appointed herself as his acting chief of staff. Masayoshi had zero issues with this because he was planning on declining the whole thing anyway, once it got to that point.

(Modeling was more his speed, anyway – it left him time to fight crime, and time to spend with Gotou-san, who needed his support! He wouldn't be able to do any of that easily as President of the World, whatever that position __actually__ entailed.)

"We haven't really talked about it," Masayoshi said. Ishihara was like his big sister, and the first person he'd told when he and Gotou crossed that threshold and actually became a __thing__. "I don't really know what you're supposed to do."

Ishihara smiled, and Masayoshi shrugged a little, his ears slightly pink. The fact that she approved of their relationship meant a lot to him. "I think you'll figure it out."

"I'm home," Masayoshi called out as he entered the apartment. He didn't see Gotou on the bed, and for a heartbeat worried that he had decided to roam, tonight – but then his head popped around the doorframe, watching Masayoshi intently. "Sorry I'm late, things ran long."

He liked to think that he had a better handle on Gotou-as-a-wolf's expressions now – like that exasperated, amused huff of a noise he made at Masayoshi's expense was more endearing than not. "I brought dinner," Masayoshi said, nodding to the plastic bags on the floor as he wobbled in place pulling his boots off. Gotou trotted over and nosed one open before Masayoshi could stop him. "Hey!"

He emerged holding the package of raw chicken delicately in his jaws, and Masayoshi pitched forward, trying to remove his other boot and swipe the package away from Gotou at the same time. "No, that's for tomorrow," he said, and Gotou growled at him, turning and heading back for the main room.

Masayoshi sighed, and put the plastic bags on the counter as he heard Gotou tear into the packaging hungrily. "If you had __told__ me you'd eat raw chicken, I would have brought some with me sooner," he called. There was a slightly sickening crunch of bone, and Masayoshi shook his head.

"Ishihara-san says hi," Masayoshi told him as he sat down at the table. Gotou was lying on the floor, the wrecked plastic packaging that had once held chicken cast off to the side. Gotou grunted, laying his head across his paws, only an arm's span from Masayoshi. "She asked if we had holiday plans, Gotou-san. Do we?"

Gotou lifted his head and cocked it, staring at Masayoshi. He flicked an ear.

"Well, we haven't __discussed__ it," Masayoshi said. Gotou huffed in response. "Sex is not __plans.__ "

He swore that Gotou chuckled, even in wolf form. Masayoshi sighed heavily and stared at the television, which Gotou had clicked on before he'd changed. The weather was on, talking about more snow and frigid temperatures. Masayoshi looked over when Gotou stood up, stretching fully, claws clacking on the tile. "What are you doing?"

Gotou circled the room once, and then headed into the kitchen area. "You better not be drinking from the toilet," Masayoshi yelled, standing up and following.

He stood in the genkan, giving Masayoshi a withering look over his shoulder, that Masayoshi could almost __hear__ the words in his mind. __Drinking out of the__ toilet? _ _Not a dog, Masayoshi!__ "You're going out?" Masayoshi said, a little disappointed.

Gotou pawed at the door once, looking back at Masayoshi.

"Okay, fine," Masayoshi said. He hesitated before unlocking the door, stooping down to put his arms around Gotou's neck, fur warm and smelling just like him. He kissed the top of Gotou's head, between his ears. "I'll leave the door unlocked," he said, and Gotou whuffled. He didn't look back when Masayoshi cracked the door, slipping out into the darkness like a shadow.

* * *

It was kind of funny, how normal it was now. Masayoshi woke slowly to a sun-warmed room, Gotou asleep in the bed next to him. He'd wriggled under the covers without waking Masayoshi – and Masayoshi looked at his sleeping face, hair ruffled in his sleep, and smiled. He must have taken care of business before climbing into bed – but as Masayoshi shifted, he felt Gotou's arousal against his leg and blushed, just slightly.

'Taking care of business' didn't always eliminate morning wood from the picture.

He snuggled in closer, brushing his hand across Gotou's face gently. His eyes opened slowly at firsts – and then snapped open, wide and surprised. Masayoshi jerked back slightly when Gotou wheeled himself partially upright – but then he looked around the room, exhaled, and flumped back into the bed besides Masayoshi.

"Well good morning to you too," Masayoshi said, as Gotou covered his eyes with his arm and groaned.

"Ugh, I feel like I've got a hangover," Gotou muttered, and lifted his arm, squinting at Masayoshi. "It's Tuesday now, right?"

"Yes, it's Tuesday," Masayoshi said, and pinched Gotou's nose shut. "Why'd you leave last night, huh? I was looking forward to using you as a pillow."

"Oi," Gotou said, his voice higher-pitched with his nose pinched shut.

Masayoshi leaned over and kissed him, before releasing his nose. Gotou touched two fingers to his face as if to check for damage, and then sighed, rolling over onto his side so he could face Masayoshi properly. "I went looking for the other wolf," he said, and Masayoshi pinched his nose again. "Ow, 'yoshi!"

"You told me that was __dangerous__ , Gotou-san."

"It is, but I can handle myself." Gotou gripped Masayoshi's wrist, which made him release Gotou's nose. "I just – I don't know, it's too big a city. Maybe there are a lot of wolves out there who stay locked in their apartments, I'd never know."

"So you shouldn't worry about it, then," Masayoshi said simply. "You should stay here and cuddle with me."

Gotou butted his head into Masayoshi's, gently. "I can cuddle with you __now__ ," he said, slipping his hand down Masayoshi's side. "We can do other things, too – not just cuddle."

"Yeah," Masayoshi said, as Gotou's hand ranged back and squeezed his ass, through his underwear. "Except that I have to get up and get a shower, I need to be into work today. It's __Tuesday.__ "

Gotou let out an impressive whine. "Whose fault is that?" Masayoshi asked, too trained to Gotou's nonverbal clues to be bothered by it. "You ate the chicken I bought for dinner too, you need to go replace that while I'm at work."

He sighed against Masayoshi's neck, and then kissed him. "Not even enough time for a hand job?" he asked, rubbing his naked arousal against Masayoshi's thigh.

"Well," Masayoshi said, feeling the slickness left behind by Gotou's leaking cock. " _ _Maybe__ a hand job."


	11. dec 17th

Gotou brushed his hand back through his hair and frowned into the bathroom mirror. His hair had gotten a bit unkempt – being on a forced leave of absence made him not as concerned with keeping it trimmed. Masayoshi didn't seem to care or comment on it, but he __was__ getting shaggy and maybe it was time to stop at the barber's. He sighed deeply and added it to the mental list of things he should probably get done in the near future, right underneath "Christmas gift for Masayoshi."

(Idiot was blessedly difficult to shop for, damn it.)

The entire apartment smelled of Masayoshi, now. It really wasn't a distraction like it once was, now that he woke up beside Masayoshi in the morning, his every breath was full of him. It made him happy in a way he still hadn't admitted to himself, but his mailing to her had grown drastically less frequent over time.

Gotou hung his towel up to dry and walked out of the bathroom naked, heading to the closet for some clean clothes. He could get a lot accomplished today, although he had a feeling he wouldn't get a chance to see Masayoshi again until the morning. He'd paused on the way in to the bathroom for a good-bye kiss, as Masayoshi was heading out the door with a tossed-off, "I might be late, but I'll try not to be!"

He'd leave, tonight. Even with how relaxed he felt around Masayoshi, even with the trust that had built between them he still didn't trust __himself__ when the moon was at its fullest in the sky. He would never forgive himself if Masayoshi got hurt.

Besides, leaving aside the fact that he didn't trust himself, the zenith of the full moon was going to be his best chance to see if this other-wolf would appear again. He had to make sure that this other-wolf was no threat to him or, more importantly, Masayoshi – he didn't care if there were other wolves in the city, the city was more than large enough for it – no, he was worried that there were those taken by the moon-sickness, who would inspire hunters and trappers and worse behind them.

He'd rather take care of it himself, before it came to that.

* * *

"What's moon-lust?" Masayoshi had asked, weeks back, between the cycles of the moon when he was just a normal, regular person again. He was laying naked next to Gotou, stretched out atop the covers of the bed, his breath calmer now.

"Not now," Gotou said, face in the pillow, tips of his ears bright red as he relieved what they just did, frantically in the mess of the covers.

"I didn't ask you any questions last month." Masayoshi nudged him with a knee. "What's moon-lust?"

"What does it __sound__ like, Masayoshi?"

"It's just when you get really horny right after you change back, right?" Masayoshi rolled up onto his side and poked Gotou in the shoulder with one finger. "So are there any other moon-issues I should be aware of? You're not gonna pee on me to mark me or anything, right?"

Gotou lifted his head from the pillow slowly, and turned and __stared__ at Masayoshi.

"Dogs pee on things to mark them!" Masayoshi said defensively. "Don't pee on me."

"I'm – __no__ ," Gotou said, and dropped his face back into the pillow. "Remind me why I like you again."

"You don't," Masayoshi rolled again, so he was flopped over Gotou's back. "You __love__ me, Gotou-san."

Gotou let out a large sigh, and then after a moment rolled them both. Masayoshi let out a yelp and a laugh as Gotou pinned him down to the bed with his shoulder, and then shifted over him so he straddled Masayoshi on the bed. "You're so __annoying__ ," he said, and Masayoshi laughed again as Gotou nuzzled his face and kissed him. "Peeing on people. Jeez, Masayoshi."

"So is there anything else?" Masayoshi asked, squinting up at him, expression open and happy.

Gotou's heart beat heavy in his chest. "You've never asked me how," he said, his mouth suddenly dry.

Masayoshi blinked a little, face settling into a more serious expression. "Because you'll tell me yourself," he said. "When you're ready."

* * *

It was sunny out – bitterly cold but sunny. Gotou wrapped the scarf around himself tighter, pulling it up over his nose. He could smoke, to try to filter out the noise, but it felt even too cold for that. Best to just move quickly, get to his destination and be done with it.

The scent leaped out of nowhere, and Gotou stopped in his tracks. Some old man walking behind him made a rude noise as he swerved past but Gotou ignored him – ten feet from an intersection as a scent old and strangely familiar passed him by.

It was warmth and comfort, familiar and nostalgic – summer in the woods, a clear stream on a sunny day -

Gotou moved quickly, looking up and down the street. With more and more pedestrians he couldn't easily see, but there was no way he could mistake that scent...

It was gone already though, lost amid the sour smell of smokers and bodywash, overdoused perfume and bodysprays. Gotou stepped out of the flow of traffic and inhaled, concentrating – chasing all the distractions from his head as he tried focusing in on one scent, one memory in particular.

It was like trying to dig a crumb out of a pile of toothpicks. The memory was buried deep – the yelling and the pain and the wide eyes flashing first in terror, then in anger -

… and it wasn't the scent he remembered.

Gotou exhaled, and leaned back against the wall, strength run out of him. It was similar, terrifyingly so, but it wasn't __theirs.__ He stood shakily and this time fished out his package of cigarettes, turning away from the sunlit street to light it with a trembling hand.

If it wasn't him – then who the hell was it that smelled so much like him?

* * *

It was on the news in the office when Masayoshi walked through the door – a wild dog attack in the city, about two victims found dead (throats ripped out, one of the interns murmured, and Masayoshi overheard), and a third in critical condition. He froze in the middle of the room and felt the floor lurch underneath him. He had never felt panic quite like this, a slick roiling in his belly, pure and undiluted __fear.__ His hands were shaking far too much for him to get his phone out and try to text Gotou, to try to get some answers.

Ishihara found him standing there. "Horrible isn't it?" she said, arms crossed. "Someone's dog, they're saying. They've been rounding up strays in the area all morning." She glanced at Masayoshi, brow furrowed in concerned. "Are you all right? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Masayoshi stared at her, dead-eyed. "I have to go."


	12. dec 18th

Gotou pushed through the underbrush – it had grown thicker with the rainy season, further obscuring the small cave – and tugged his hood down as he ducked through the opening. It had been a lucky find, months back, when he had been weak-legged and starving. It still smelled faintly of bear, enough so that other predators avoided it. All the same, Gotou didn't quite trust his nose that he was alone, and shone his flashlight into its depths … just in case.

It had been raining off and on the entire day, grey and foggy, but Gotou could still feel the pull of the moon. It lived in him now, he understood that much – just like he understood it was safer, and easier to ride out the cycle away from home, away from his mother – who assumed, saw the pack and the sleeping roll and simply __assumed.__ He would let her assume, because it was close enough to the truth - that's what he filled his days with while this occurred, searching with heightened nose and sharper eyes, looking for some trace, some scrap of evidence to finally give them all peace...

He brushed a hand through his shorter hair, damp with the moisture in the air. It wouldn't do her any good to know the truth, because what was the truth of it, anyway? He rode through the transformation every full moon and still wasn't certain if he actually believed in werewolves, so what was the point in trying to tell others? They already thought him crazy.

He set up camp, to while away the time until darkness covered the land and the moon rose, hidden still behind the rainclouds. His hand hesitated in the pack when he brushed the phone – but he hadn't turned it on since he'd left the highway, trekking into the woods on foot. Its charge had to last him the weekend.

( _ _Her__ phone... it still smelled like her, slightly, the barest trace of lotion and scent, fading further every day...)

Gotou caught a scent as he took off his shirt – it wasn't an animal, curious at being disturbed from its habitat – but it wasn't a person, either. He wrinkled his nose, hesitating – but the scent was there and gone, something passing in the twilight. There was little that frightened him now, but he felt a strange uneasiness settle on him when the scent came round again, before the change took him – and when he nosed out through the underbrush and stepped carefully into the rain-churned mud, he caught the scent now, stronger this time, amplified with the rain.

There was a crunching noise from above, and when Gotou turned, looking back up the hillside that hid his refuge, he saw them on the hillside, fur matted down with the rainwater and watching him with calm, golden eyes.

 _ _Wolves.__

* * *

"It wasn't me," Gotou said when he answered his phone – it was Masayoshi's second phone call, he hadn't gotten his phone out in time to answer the first. He could feel Masayoshi's relief, palpable through the airwaves, and felt just the tiniest bit insulted. "Didn't you believe me, when I said I don't hurt others?"

"I believe you," Masayoshi said, his voice crackling with interference. "What now?"

What now, indeed. Gotou stood outside the hospital, away from the doors. He'd had to fudge the truth a little bit to get inside, provide a quick flash of his badge (which he really shouldn't be using for this purpose, especially if they sent his badge information back to the station) but the nurse on detail had said the third victim likely would not survive the night.

"I don't know," Gotou said, and looked at the sky.

* * *

They met at a small restaurant Gotou had never been to before – it had nice secluded booths so they would not be overheard by other patrons. "I can't believe you ditched work," Gotou said when he arrived, Masayoshi sitting with a mug of hot tea.

"I was concerned," Masayoshi said stubbornly, and Gotou hung his coat and scarf. He eyed Gotou. "You can't be mad at me for being concerned," he said, jutting his chin out. "Not when you spend so much time going on about how ~dangerous~ you are to me."

Gotou glowered at him, but there wasn't a whole lot of malice behind it, because Masayoshi had a point. He had every right to jump to conclusions, especially given how close to home these attacks occurred. "I gotta find who did this," he said.

"I know," Masayoshi said, and fidgeted with his mug. "How can I help?"

"You can't." Cold and simple.

Masayoshi looked up at him, eyes narrowed. "Wrong answer, Gotou-san."

"This is something between wolves," Gotou said. "You don't have a place here, Masayoshi. You can get hurt really easily, and -" he thought about the teenage girl in the ICU, and the nurse's cold assessment. He looked down at the table, hands curled into fists in his lap.

"You act like that's going to stop me," Masayoshi cocked his head, leaning forward against the table, arms folded on it.

"This is __different,__ Masayoshi, this is __real life-__ " Gotou realized how stupid he sounded and shut his mouth with a click, still angrily flustered. "I won't be able to handle it if you get hurt," he said instead, softly. "Please don't put me through that."

"That's not fair."

"I know." They stared at each other over the table, and Masayoshi let out a long, exaggerated sigh.

"Still not going to stop me. What do we know?"

Gotou groaned slightly, but gave in. "Two victims, soon to be three, attacked together sometime after midnight last night." When Masayoshi opened his mouth to ask a question, Gotou held up a finger. "Third is in critical condition and isn't expected to survive."

"How do you __know__?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou gestured a little with his hand.

"I … asked," he said. "The nurse at the hospital had been answering questions from police all day, she didn't even bat an eye giving me the same information."

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, scandalized.

"I'm still an officer, even if I'm on leave," Gotou said. Masayoshi eyed him. "Besides, I needed to know if the third victim was going to live or not, because if she had..." he glanced up and to the right, as the waitress stopped by with their meals.

It was a forced interruption and easy enough to smile and say thanks, as Gotou looked at the bento he had ordered. "Would she be like you?" Masayoshi asked, chopsticks in hand.

Gotou looked up at him, and nodded.

"Do you think this is the same wolf you heard?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou closed his eyes. There had been no howls the previous night, no moon-song, just the usual quiet symphony of distant traffic and the occasional pedestrian.

"Yeah," he said. Masayoshi was silent for a long moment, still having not taken a bite of his meal.

"Do you know who did it?" he asked, and Gotou lifted his head, and looked Masayoshi square in the eye.

"Yes."

* * *

It was too dangerous to go out that night, he knew – what with police and animal workers on the road still, rounding up every stray animal they came across. Gotou was confident in his ability to outrun the police and dogcatchers – he'd been doing it for years – but Masayoshi was worried as it was, worried that he wouldn't be quick enough, that something would happen.

So he lay on the bed, tail thumping occasionally, Masayoshi sitting beside him and brushing his fingers over the crest of Gotou's skull. He'd scritch occasionally, and __fuck__ if that felt good, and he'd lean his head into Masayoshi's hand – but he was mostly thinking about how he was going to handle this.

Masayoshi flipped it over to the late news as he puttered around preparing for bed – he was in the bathroom brushing his teeth when the report came on. Gotou sat up, ears up as they showed a reporter at the scene, where someone else had been attacked and killed.

 _ _Wild dog attacks__ read the caption across the bottom of the screen, as Masayoshi emerged from the bathroom, toothbrush dangling from his mouth.

"We're going to stop this," Masayoshi said quietly, and Gotou's tail thumped harder.


	13. jan 15th

" _ _The first night of the moon is always the lightest," he had said, perched on the edge of a rock, the morning sunlight golden in his hair. "The moon calls to you, takes you running – whether you're in a city or not, the first moon urges you to roam."__

* * *

Gotou said, standing half naked in the doorway, "absolutely __not__."

Masayoshi held his helmet in both hands and glared at Gotou. "I'm not letting you go out there alone, Gotou-san!"

"That's not the point," Gotou said, scratching a hand through his hair, resting the other on his hip. "It's-"

"I know it's dangerous," Masayoshi said, before Gotou could. "I __know__. I'm not afraid of that. I can help!"

" _ _How?__ "

Masayoshi opened his mouth to respond – and then snapped it closed. "How do you kill a werewolf?"

"That's what I thought." Gotou retreated back into the bathroom – presumably to shed his pants, but Masayoshi followed him to the open doorway stubbornly.

"That's important! I should know that anyway, if this sort of thing happens often..."

"It won't," Gotou rubbed his hand through his hair again, hesitant in getting rest of the way undressed with Masayoshi there, as if it were something forbidden. "Anyway, I don't know. Bullets, I guess."

"You don't __know__?"

"How exactly am I supposed to test something like that, huh?" Gotou said, leaning on the sink and looking back at Masayoshi. "I'm not immortal, 'yoshi."

Masayoshi thought about this. "You've never had to fight another werewolf?"

"Never said that," Gotou muttered.

"Really? Tell me about it!"

"Maybe later," Gotou said. He was starting to get that really uncomfortable feeling that the change was imminent. "Masayoshi, could you, I don't know, __leave?__ I need to -" he gestured at himself, still wearing his pants.

"Oh, I don't mind, Gotou-san," Masayoshi said.

"Yeah, but __I__ mind," Gotou said.

"Why?"

"I just __do."__ He shooed Masayoshi back with both hands, and shut the door behind him.

"I could just leave you locked in there," Masayoshi said as Gotou slid off his pants.

"You better not," Gotou said. It was the last words he said, as he fell to four legs and let out a long, low snuffling growl. Masayoshi cracked the door open and stared at him, as Gotou dragged his pants over to the hamper in his jaws.

"I'm coming with you," Masayoshi said again, and Gotou snorted, and slipped past him into the room. "I'm serious, Gotou-san!"

Gotou padded around Masayoshi, once, twice – he didn't feel __smaller__ in this form, to either of them, sleek and powerful – and then he padded over to the genkan, claws clacking awkwardly on the tile. He looked at Masayoshi expectantly, waiting for him to open the door.

They'd been discussing this for a week. There had been no more "wild dog attacks" since the last night of the full moon the preceding month – which, if there had been any __shadow__ of a doubt whether the killings were done by a werewolf that would have all but eliminated it – and there was always the chance the wolf had moved on to greener pastures, out of Gotou's territory.

All the same. This other wolf had __murdered__ people in his territory. He had to make sure it wouldn't happen again.

Masayoshi stood at the door, his hands on his hips. "If I open that door you're going to take off without me," he said.

Gotou looked back at Masayoshi, ears back.

"What am I supposed to do if you get __hurt__?" Masayoshi asked him. Gotou heaved a big sigh – __I won't__ – and sat his haunches down, leaning his head back so that Masayoshi could put his arms around him. "I'm still going out tonight," Masayoshi said into his fur.

Gotou shifted under his grasp, and when Masayoshi released him, Gotou did something he __knew__ he'd regret later, and licked Masayoshi's cheek. Masayoshi blinked at him in surprise and Gotou ducked his head, then whined and looked at the door.

"Okay," Masayoshi said, and opened it.

* * *

Gotou knew who the wolf was, and he hadn't told Masayoshi.

Masayoshi sat on the edge of the bed, holding his helmet in his hands as he stared through it. He wondered if Gotou forgot he'd said that – that he _ _knew__ the identity of the killer and hadn't revealed it – Masayoshi understood, a little, because going to the police would mean revealing his lycanthropy to the world – but wasn't that worth it, to take a killer off the streets?

Masayoshi leaned back, thought of Gotou – how easily he smiled now for Masayoshi, rolling his eyes fondly whenever he went off on a tangent – he'd climbed on top of Masayoshi just this morning, kissing him awake slowly, brushing his hand through Masayoshi's hair and knee pressed between his legs. He was unashamed of returning Masayoshi's feelings finally, so – why did he still hold back?

He sat up suddenly, the realization dawning.

 _ _He planned to kill the wolf himself.__

Masayoshi scrambled to his feet. He hadn't finished putting his costume on – it was thin and light, not very appropriate for the weather and besides, his 'secret identity' was known fact – so he pulled on a heavy coat and scarf and almost forget his keys in his haste.

He had no idea what he was going to do, but he had to do __something.__

* * *

The wind through branches sent all the wooden paddles clacking together. Gotou didn't hesitate as he crossed under the wooden torii, ears forward and senses on high alert. He'd felt something here he couldn't explain when they'd visited the shrine for New Year's. His senses were not any more heightened than an average human's during the low parts of the cycle, he couldn't smell or hear anything more – but he had felt it all the same, a strange crawling in his spine.

The shrine was quiet of course – no one would be out this late, halfway through the month – and there was no sign of the person-wolf who bore the same scent, familiar and cold. He stopped underneath a tree, its skeletal limbs twisted high into the night sky, and looked up at the white orb cut to pieces by the branches.

 _ _Moon-song.__

He flicked his ears back, and raised his head.

* * *

Masayoshi was on the street when he heard the lonely howl, soft and distant. He stopped and looked at the sky, wondered where in the city Gotou was – and felt his heart jump into his throat as even more distantly, he heard an answering howl.


	14. jan 16th

"If you try to put a collar on me I will make you regret it," Gotou said, surprisingly calm over breakfast.

Masayoshi furrowed his brow, unable to stifle the third yawn that had crept through in the last few minutes. "I didn't say anything," he said, and figured that if Gotou had telepathy too he probably would have strangled Masayoshi long before today.

"I could feel you thinking it," Gotou muttered.

He'd found Masayoshi very late (or very early) sitting on the swings in the park they often walked to. He'd been dozing off, upright, and almost went over backwards when Gotou had butted his knee with his head.

"It's dangerous!" he had yelled, as soon as he'd shifted back – still naked and fuming. "What if he'd __found__ you, what if he'd __hurt__ you-!"

"It's no more dangerous for me than it is anyone else walking around at night," Masayoshi snapped back – and he'd seen __something__ cross Gotou's face that he didn't understand, couldn't ask because he didn't know. Gotou had snarled – inhuman-sounding still, it made the hair on the back of Masayoshi's neck stand on end, and then Gotou stormed out of the room, the bathroom door slamming behind him.

The shower seemed to have calmed him down, at least, because he was far less prickly when he emerged, in clean if slightly-rumpled clothing and toweling his head off. Masayoshi was exhausted through but Gotou seemed fresh, as if he had slept the night through instead of roaming the city. "Don't you need to sleep?" Masayoshi groaned, one elbow on the table.

Gotou shook his head slightly. "Not around the cycle, not really."

"Efficient," Masayoshi muttered. He rubbed his jaw with one hand. "I don't get why you're so worried," he said. "And if you know this wolf, why won't you tell me about him?"

"I'm not certain it's him," Gotou said, refusing to make eye contact. "I thought he was dead."

Masayoshi's head darted up, but Gotou still hadn't looked up from his food. "It was a long time ago," he said softly.

"Is he the wolf who turned you?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou lifted his head, and then shook it.

"No. I've never met that wolf again." Gotou stood up and picked up Masayoshi's mostly-untouched plate. "You're exhausted, Masayoshi, you should get some rest."

Masayoshi eyed him. "Are you coming to bed, too?"

"As much fun as that invitation sounds, I have to..." Gotou paused, and then shuffled the dishes so he could tap his nose. "I need to use this, while I have it. He can't stir up trouble in the daytime."

As Gotou retreated into the kitchen area to dump his dishes, Masayoshi got to his feet, pushing through the exhaustion. "Then I'm coming with you," he said, and walked toward the kitchen area.

Gotou doused the dishes, turned around, and ducked under Masayoshi, scooping him up in a sudden, startled move. Masayoshi barely had time to blink, let alone fight back before Gotou deposited him on the bed, slightly winded. "You," Gotou said firmly, "are getting some __sleep.__ "

Masayoshi glowered at him, but couldn't stifle another yawn. "Gotou-san is __mean__ ," he said, and Gotou put a knee on the mattress and leaned down, nose brushing Masayoshi's as he initiated the kiss.

"Sleep," Gotou murmured, and Masayoshi sighed.

* * *

 _ _Morning brought with it sunlight, devastatingly bright and surreal after a long rain. Birdsong filled the trees, and when Gotou surfaced in the frigid lake-water he realized that he wasn't alone.__

 _ _The man sat on an outcropping, where Gotou had left his clothes, watching Gotou with a laid-back expression. "So you survived the night," he said, as Gotou sank somewhat in the water, eyes locked on this new threat. "I'm impressed, little cub."__

" _ _This isn't my first time," Gotou said, exposed and vulnerable in the lake. He had no weapons, no defense – and the man laughed at him. His blood boiled, and Gotou started to growl.__

" _ _No," the man cocked his head, golden hair falling across one eye – and Gotou saw one of the wolves from the previous night, mottled grey and tan, golden eyes like twins suns. He didn't relax. "You're still new. Where is your sire?"__

" _ _I don't know what you're talking about," Gotou said.__

 _ _He sighed, clearly put-out. "Who__ bit __you, cub?"__

" _ _Don't call me that," Gotou growled. "I don't know what monster bit me, but when I find them I'll__ kill _ _them." Deep breath, eyes locked on the stranger. "Just like I'll kill you if you don't leave me alone."__

" _ _Tch," the man got to his feet, slowly – golden hair and golden eyes, even long after the moon had set, stranger still – and he waved a hand in front of his face. "I'll ignore that, because you're young. Come find us when you're ready."__

* * *

There hadn't been an attack the previous night. Gotou exhaled in relief, scrolling through news websites on his phone as he sat at a table in a coffee shop, alone. The morning crush of commuters brought with it a cacophony of sound and scent, things that he had learned to tune out over time.

There was no way to tell by the moon-song of the previous night, if it was the same wolf or a different one. He hadn't encountered the scent again, same-but-different, and it could have been a coincidence.

(He didn't really __believe__ in coincidence, not anymore – but.)

Still.

Tonight was the apex moon. The blooded moon, the one that brought out all the wolves, regardless of their history; the one he tried to keep himself away from Masayoshi. He was better now – now that he allowed himself to touch Masayoshi, he didn't fear losing what little control he had. That led to different fears, of course – fear of losing him, fear of the fact that whenever he allowed himself to relax, to have something nice that it would be snatched away from him as coldly and without explanation as she was...

His cell phone buzzed, and he glanced at the notification. __She__ hadn't contacted him in a few weeks – better all the same, although he did miss her advice – but this did not come from the familiar mail address. In fact, this address had been scrambled, likely spoofed – and all the hair along the back of Gotou's neck went up as the picture downloaded.

It was a wolf, fur patterned golden and white, familiar in a way he'd barely thought of in years. She was sprawled casually across the concrete of a warehouse floor, throat torn out and blood staining the delicate fur.

Gotou's entire being ran cold.

 _ _Who is this?__ He sent the mail with shaking fingers, but it came right back, bounced from the server as undeliverable. Suddenly, the bright sunny morning had lost its luster.

* * *

" _ _The second moon is for song," he had said, leaning back and staring at the sky. "For celebration, for all wolves are born anew on the second night, bathed under the brightest light of the moon."__


	15. jan 17th

Masayoshi was awake when Gotou slunk through the door, trying to sneak in as the sun peaked over the horizon. "Where have you __been__?" Masayoshi said, and Gotou winced just a little, standing in the genkan and swaying on his feet.

"Sorry," he muttered, eyes downcast as he heeled off his shoes.

" _ _Sorry?__ " Masayoshi repeated – he had already crossed the room, face like a stormcloud. "I woke up and you were gone, and you __never came back.__ What was I supposed to think, Gotou-san?"

"I should have called," Gotou said, and scratched a hand through his dirty hair. He felt old, far too old in the moment and he just wanted to take a hot bath and soak off the grime and the exhaustion. "I'm sorry, Masayoshi-"

"I found your wolf," Masayoshi said softly, and Gotou's head snapped up, eyes wide – and realized that Masayoshi had bandages peeking out from under the hooded sweatshirt, that there was an unbandaged scrape on the side of his face – and the panic seized in his chest.

" _ _Did he bite you?__ "

Gotou had crossed the threshold, had his hands on Masayoshi's face, heart in his throat – but Masayoshi shook his head imperceptibly, patting the bandages through his shirt. "I fell, Gotou-san – he took off before I could do much more than yell, but I-" the rest of his sentence was cut off as Gotou kissed him, shaking slightly in his relief.

"I'm fine," Masayoshi said finally, panting a little by the time Gotou let him up for air.

"I __told__ you not to go out, it's-" Gotou started, and this time Masayoshi kissed him to stop him from saying it.

"I know," he said softly. Then he shoved Gotou in the chest, brow furrowed. "You could have at least __texted__ Gotou-san, I actually went out looking for __you__."

"I was..." Angry _ _. Head thrown back to the sky, baying a challenge to anyone who could hear it, looking for anyone, anything – and receiving nothing.__ "Distracted."

"Did you at least find what you were looking for?" Masayoshi looked into his eyes, didn't flinch back from the inhumanness of them.

He sighed. "No."

Masayoshi pinched his nose shut, and Gotou made a distressed noise. "Well, you don't really deserve this because I'm still mad at you, but your dick has been poking my thigh this entire time and we need to do something about it."

"I can take care of it in the bath," Gotou said turning red and voice muffled with his nose pinched shut.

"I said __we__ ," Masayoshi muttered, and ground himself against Gotou's thigh.

" _ _Oh.__ "

* * *

Masayoshi naked under him almost made him forget all his troubles. Gotou brushed one hand through Masayoshi's hair and kissed his scraped cheek gently, while Masayoshi hitched his leg over Gotou's thigh and rocked against him. He just felt so alive, overwhelmed by Masayoshi's scent, his arousal flooding over Gotou like a cresting wave.

He rocked impatiently against Gotou, their cocks pressed together in Gotou's hand – Masayoshi wanted more, clearly, but Gotou wanted to do this right, slow and tender, squeezing them both as he stroked them slowly. Masayoshi wrapped his arms around Gotou's neck, pulling him down, so he released their cocks and braced his hands on either side of Masayoshi's head, rubbing himself against Masayoshi with his hips.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi murmured, kissing him again, breath hot like a furnace. He moaned and Gotou captured his mouth, kissed him again. "I want you in-"

"No," Gotou said raggedly, and dragged himself harder against Masayoshi. "Close, __close-__ "

Masayoshi's fingers crooked, and he dragged them hard against Gotou's back. "Then __ride__ me," he hissed, and Gotou bit his own lip before breaking Masayoshi's hold and surging to his knees.

He knew Masayoshi expected him to fight that, but he couldn't, dammit, he would do anything Masayoshi asked of him in this moment. He grasped Masayoshi's cock with one hand, squeezing and stroking it and Masayoshi gripped his thigh tightly. " _ _Lube__ ," he wheezed. "You're not even _ _stretched-__ "

Gotou ignored him and pressed himself down on Masayoshi, hissing out a long pained breath at the intrusion. Masayoshi gripped both of his legs now, eyes wide as he sank so slowly down on him. "Don't __hurt__ yourself," Masayoshi gasped, fingernails scoring into Gotou's thighs.

"Doesn't," Gotou grunted, eyes squeezed shut. "Doesn't __hurt__ , ah-"

He let out a low moan when he got all of Masayoshi seated inside him, and Masayoshi groaned in response. "So tight, Gotou-san, so __hot-__ "

Gotou put his palm over the bandage on Masayoshi's shoulder. He leaned down, and Masayoshi's eyes met his – mostly back to normal, now – and Gotou said, softly, "I wouldn't forgive myself, Masayoshi, please-"

He looped his arm over Gotou's, dragged his hand away from the bandages and up to his face where he kissed the palm of Gotou's hand. "I'm fine," he said, and rolled his hips. Gotou's eyes slid shut.

* * *

"You knew her?" Masayoshi said, towel over his shoulders to catch the stray drops from his shower. He'd found Gotou staring at the picture on his phone again. "I thought you didn't know any other werewolves."

Gotou turned the phone over, not wanting to look at the image any longer. "I didn't know her real name," he said. "She just went by Hoshi. Besides, it's been-" __a lifetime__ "-years since I saw her. Or any of the others."

Masayoshi opened his mouth to ask about the others and Gotou saw it coming. "The mail came from an unreturnable address, it was spoofed," he said, directing the flow of the conversation elsewhere.

"How many others?" Masayoshi asked, too single-minded to be diverted.

"Just a handful," Gotou sighed. "I don't know any of their real names. No one did. It was the rule."

 _ _Your life as a wolf, and your life as a human, are two separate things. That's how it should always be.__

"Like a secret identity," Masayoshi said.

" _ _No__ ," Gotou said automatically – then sighed, and said. "Yes, I guess. Kinda."

"What is YOUR wolf name?" Masayoshi asked, dropped to his knees beside Gotou and clearly excited by this revelation.

"I'm not telling you that," Gotou said.

"Gotou-saaaaaaan," Masayoshi whined, and wrapped himself around Gotou's side. "I told you MY superhero name right when I met you! You're so mean!"

"It's not a – it's not __like__ that, and you know it."

Masayoshi pouted at him, and Gotou sighed again. "I'm not going to tell you, you can pout all you __want__ , I'm not telling you."

"Stingy," Masayoshi muttered. He sat back on his knees. "So now someone's killing werewolves? What do we do?"

"Stop them," Gotou said.

"Obviously. I meant, __how__?"

"I have no idea," Gotou muttered, staring at his overturned phone.

* * *

" _ _And the third moon?" Gotou asked, seated in the fresh loam, staring at the clearing morning sky.__

" _ _The third moon is for killing," he responded, his smile full of wicked-sharp teeth, too full for the moon to be gone from the sky. "The third is for blood."__


	16. feb 14th

"That better not be what I think it is," Gotou said without looking up from his magazine. Masayoshi had just come through the door moments before, stomping snow off his boots in the genkan and hanging his coat and scarf.

"What?" Masayoshi asked, seating himself on his knees at the table. "What are you talking about?"

Gotou looked up from his magazine as Masayoshi began to root through his knapsack. Masayoshi had decided to go out midway through the day, even though the gray skies threatened snow again; picking up dinner (mostly for him) and more beer (because Gotou was sulking). Gotou's expression soured slightly as he heard the crinkle of cellophane as the package emerged from Masayoshi's knapsack. " _ _Masayoshi,__ " Gotou said, exasperated.

"It's __Valentine's Day,__ " Masayoshi said emphatically. "You're my special person, Gotou-san! I couldn't make it since you're here all the time, so I had to buy some."

Gotou looked at the small package of gaudily-wrapped chocolate, and then back up to Masayoshi's face. Masayoshi looked confused a moment. "...oh!" he said, and Gotou sighed deeply, because he had an inkling about where this was going. "Can you even eat chocolate? It's bad for dogs..."

"Masayoshi," Gotou said, a warning note in his tone.

"I don't want you to get __sick!__ I'm sorry, I didn't even think about it!"

" _ _Masayoshi.__ "

"Wait, but I've seen you eat chocolatey things before, is this only during the moon that you can't? Oh, that's bad timing-"

"Masayoshi!"

Masayoshi finally looked up, brow furrowed. "What?"

"Give me the damn chocolate." Gotou held out his hand, and Masayoshi hesitated. "I'm not gonna get sick off it, __I'm not a damn dog.__ "

"I've never seen you eat chocolate during the full moon, are you sure you'll be all right?" Masayoshi asked, his hands on his knees now that he'd surrendered the chocolate. "I'd feel awful if it made you ill."

"You didn't make it, I'll be fine," Gotou said. He turned the small package of chocolate over in his hands and couldn't help feel a pang of fond amusement. "Is that why you went out, to sneak off and go buy chocolate?"

"Well, not __just__ that," Masayoshi said. He very pointedly avoiding looking at Gotou as he rummaged around in his knapsack – and when he turned pink to his ears, Gotou honestly expected him to produce worse than a fresh bottle of lube and a package of condoms.

"You know tonight's the moon," Gotou told him, trying to let him down gently, keep the quirk of his smile from being too evident. "I'll really want to do it in the morning, anyway-"

"But," Masayoshi said determinedly, looking up at Gotou finally. "It's __Valentine's Day,__ Gotou-san." He got up from his knees and started to climb on the bed, eyes locked with Gotou's. "It's our __first__ ," he said, and Gotou could smell him already, he __knew__ that this wasn't going to go away.

"Honestly," Gotou said, tossing the magazine to the side and shifting as Masayoshi crawled over his lap. He caught Masayoshi's chin and tilted his head just right, he could almost taste how turned on Masayoshi already was through the kiss. "It's only a few hours until the moon rises," he said pointedly, and Masayoshi drew back a little and pouted. "If you wanted to do this you should have said something earlier, idiot, we could have fooled around all day."

"We can still fool around," Masayoshi said, kneeling over Gotou.

"Fine," Gotou said, and Masayoshi grinned. "I don't want to hear you complaining come tomorrow morning though," he said as Masayoshi kissed him again.

* * *

Masayoshi buried his face in the pillow and let out a long satisfied noise as Gotou pushed a third finger into him. A shiver ran down Gotou's spine at the moan, it felt electric to him, Masayoshi's satisfaction, and he spread his fingers inside, pressing against Masayoshi's inner walls.

He was used to this smell, or – he __should__ be, he'd fooled around with Masayoshi after he changed – it was usually desperate and quick, and if Masayoshi hadn't thought to prep himself Gotou would ride him instead, unable to wait long enough to do it right – but for some reason the scent of Masayoshi's arousal was completely overwhelming. He felt harder than he'd been in a long time, and it was taking a terrible toll to restrain himself, to make certain that Masayoshi was ready for him.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi panted into the pillow as Gotou pressed his fingers deeper, watching Masayoshi's hips jerk. "P-please-"

"Is it good?" Gotou asked him, as if he didn't know, as if he couldn't hear the small happy noises Masayoshi made every time he twitched his fingers, trying to press deeper. "You're so hot, 'yoshi, your insides are trying to suck my fingers in."

Masayoshi moaned, muffled again by the pillow. Gotou cracked a grin, dirty talk would either embarrass him or turn him on further, and it was endearingly cute how embarrassed Masayoshi could get like __this__ , with as many times they'd done it before. He __should__ be embarrassed himself, but he was too caught up in the moment.

"Put it in me," Masayoshi said, voice pleading. "Gotou-san, please, put it __in..."__

He withdrew his fingers and watched the overspill of lube leak down Masayoshi's legs. "Like this?" he said, up on his knees now, one hand on Masayoshi's hip to steady him. Masayoshi turned his head just slightly, red-faced and panting, and his eye met Gotou's as he nodded.

They've done this before. They've done this __many__ times before, in this position even, but all the same this time feels __different.__ Gotou can feel the electricity under his skin, the pins and needles – it's still too far away from the change for it to be __that__ , but his breath is bunched up in his lungs and he's so concentrated on the feeling of sinking into Masayoshi he almost missed the low, needy __growl__ that came from underneath him.

"Masayoshi," Gotou gasped, and Masayoshi makes the noise again, more demanding this time.

"You're so big," Masayoshi moaned, face half-buried in the pillow. "Sucking you didn't even __help__ this time, jeez-"

Gotou leaned forward, brushed his hand through Masayoshi's hair – it would be difficult to kiss him at this angle, but not entirely impossible. "I'm not hurting you, am I?" he asked, concerned, and Masayoshi shook his head.

"'s good," he said, syllables just a little slurred. "You can move, Gotou-san, plea-ahh-"

He didn't wait for Masayoshi to even finish speaking, because he's been completely overwhelmed. Gotou moves slowly at first, but Masayoshi doesn't like that, slamming his hips back in defiance, begging to be fucked __hard__. He doesn't want to hurt Masayoshi, but the hold he has on his self-control is tenuous at best in this situation, and before long he's doing exactly what Masayoshi wanted, fucking him hard and intense, the mattress almost bouncing on its frame.

Masayoshi's body shook when he came, one hand reached back through his legs, stroking himself punishingly in time with Gotou's rhythm. Gotou didn't slow down even as his orgasm rippled through him, causing Masayoshi to clench down tighter than before.

He felt so __weird__ , so tight and pent-up, and the feeling settled in groin. Masayoshi flailed a hand back and moaned as Gotou pressed himself as deep as he could get, hands on Masayoshi's ass, gripping him hard as he came. He saw stars for a moment, and that tight, pent-up feeling didn't quite pass like he expected, blurry and sated.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi heaved, hand still flailing blinding, smacking off of Gotou's thigh. "Don't, don't get __bigger__ , I can't take it-"

"I'm not-" Gotou said dumbly. His head felt like it was stuffed with gauze, and Masayoshi was so tight he couldn't breathe.

"Ahhh, __ow-__ " Masayoshi wriggled. "Pull it __out,__ Gotou-san!"

Gotou panted, staring down at where they were joined, hands still gripping Masayoshi's hips. "I, I __can't__ ," he said, stunned. Masayoshi contracted on him, tighter than before and when he tried to shift backwards, to slide himself out, he met with such resistance – and Masayoshi let out a surprised, pained noise so he stopped.

" _ _Gotou-san!__ "

"I can't!" Gotou said, desperate because of the pain in Masayoshi's voice. "I don't – you'll __tear__ , Masayoshi-"

"I'm gonna __burst!"__

Gotou pulled Masayoshi back against him, and Masayoshi let out another noise, but this one was not pained. He writhed against Gotou and gasped, and Gotou very carefully shifted them both backward, pulling Masayoshi onto his lap, stopping every time Masayoshi made a noise.

"What's," Masayoshi's breath was hitching, he was panting, red-faced down to his chest, sweat running down his face. Gotou nuzzled his face again the back of Masayoshi's neck, his scent so __heated__ , flushed with arousal and the slightest hint of something else. "What's going __on__ -"

"I don't know," Gotou said, shifting his hips slightly, feeling Masayoshi shudder. "I don't want to hurt you, I can't pull it o-"

"Oh my god," Masayoshi said, tilting his head back against Gotou's shoulder, eyes closed. "It's so __big__ , Gotou-san..."

"I know, I know-" Gotou said, and inhaled. "I'm sorry."

"Maybe if you come again," Masayoshi said, his eyes closed.

"I already came!"

"You're still hard." Masayoshi rocked just slightly, figuring out his range of movement before he inhaled sharply. "Come again, Gotou-san, fill me up even more."

"God," Gotou grunted. "Don't say things like that, Masayoshi." He rocked Masayoshi on his lap, slid his hand down Masayoshi's side and stroked him slowly. "It's that sort of shit that makes me hard."

Masayoshi panted dryly to the ceiling, chest heaving as they rocked slowly. Gotou kissed his shoulder, dragged his teeth across the fevered flesh and Masayoshi shuddered, tilting his head and gasping slightly.

"Your eyes, Gotou-san," he said, wetting his lips.

" _ _Shit__ ," Gotou said, and Masayoshi looped his arm around, hand against the back of Gotou's head, and tilted him down into a kiss. "Masayoshi-"

"Come," Masayoshi urged him, voice breathless – and Gotou did, felt himself surge again, felt the strange heat and tension slowly start to ease.

He worked himself out of Masayoshi slowly – Masayoshi still hissed, a little pained – and Gotou stared at his swollen cock, watching the strange bulge at the base go down slowly. Masayoshi still had his head on Gotou's shoulder, slid half off his lap now, and stared as well. "Wow," he said, fingers stroking over Gotou's cock. "What is __that?__ "

"I don't know," Gotou said, only a little panicked. "That's never happened before. Are you okay?"

"It felt good," Masayoshi said dreamily. "When we had the angle right." He brushed his hand through Gotou's short hair. "You're gonna change soon."

Gotou wet his lips, his worry tied more to Masayoshi than anything at the moment. "Don't worry about me," he said. "Are you hurt, let me see."

"I want to go again," Masayoshi said. "But you're gonna change." He curled up in Gotou's lap and sighed. "Unfair."

"You're okay," Gotou said with a shaky laugh. He kissed the side of Masayoshi's head and sighed. "That's never happened before," he said again. "What's so different now?"

"You're gonna change," Masayoshi said drowsily.

"Yeah," Gotou said. "Yeah."

* * *

Gotou did change, not long after – his cell phone alarm went off, giving him a ten minute warning that moonrise was on its way. Masayoshi watched him lazily from the bed, laying on his stomach and naked still atop the sheets.

"Don't beat yourself up, Gotou-san," he said, drowsy but now able to articulate his thoughts better. "You didn't know it would happen."

"I hurt you," he said, sitting cross-legged on the floor beside the bed, still naked but waiting. He brushed his fingers through Masayoshi's sweat-soaked bangs and Masayoshi closed his eyes, expression serene.

"Mm, I kinda liked it," he said. Gotou let out a long sigh, and when Masayoshi opened his eyes it was the wolf who was staring at him, concern still evident on his features. Masayoshi reached his hand out and Gotou butted it, and he smiled, before closing his eyes again and drifting off.


	17. feb 15th

He'd gotten into the habit of setting an alarm on his phone for when the moon set – so he'd be awake to let Gotou in, if need be, especially in the cold winter months. It went off at way too early in the morning, but he'd seen earlier – from both sides, getting up to catch an airplane or having stayed out all night patrolling.

(Speaking of which, he needed to mention that to Gotou, for when it got warmer out again they could match their schedules.)

The thought of going out on patrols with Gotou – granted in his wolf form, (but with a matching scarf! oh he would have to figure out how to approach this because that would look so cool) – made Masayoshi grin at the ceiling as his phone buzzed merrily away on the table.

Getting up proved a little more difficult, because he was __very__ sore. Without Gotou here to panic he let out a little pained groan and winced, but got to his feet and stretched. It didn't hurt any worse than the first time they'd had sex, fumbling and unsure, where Gotou hadn't known how to judge if Masayoshi was ready or not and he'd bled a little. (There had been a __lot__ of panic there, but. Things healed, even if it took him a while to coax Gotou into trying again.)

Masayoshi puttered around, making coffee and breakfast, although he knew Gotou likely wouldn't eat his, so he didn't make much. The scratching at the door came a little later, and he opened it and beamed at Gotou for a split second, before he realized that Gotou was covered in snow.

He closed the door.

Gotou butted his head into the door, and Masayoshi called (quietly, but he knew Gotou would hear him and he didn't want to wake the neighbors), "shake off OUTSIDE this time, Gotou-san!"

Gotou made a huffing noise. Masayoshi peeked the door open, and he wasn't covered in quite as much snow. "You're still wet."

Gotou shook himself off aggressively – Masayoshi didn't quite get the door closed in time but avoided most of the spray – and when he leaned his head out again Gotou was still shaking off, but not as violently. "Did you do nothing but roll in snowbanks?" Masayoshi asked, as Gotou squeezed through the gap in the door, brushing past Masayoshi's legs.

He watched Gotou pad around the foyer area, dripping all over the genkan and the floor. "Go in the bathroom, you're soaked!" Masayoshi said, pointing – and Gotou shook his head and sneezed. It was very cute, but Masayoshi put his hands on his hips. "If you catch a __cold__ ," he said, as Gotou shook his head and sneezed again, twice.

He turned to lock the door, and when he turned back again Gotou was standing there on two legs, rubbing his hand under his nose. "I'm not getting sick," he said, and sneezed again.

"Sure you're not," Masayoshi said, and pointed toward the bathroom. "I drew a hot bath for you, you should go get in it."

Gotou caught his sleeve with one hand, and Masayoshi looked at him curiously. "You should join me," he said, and Masayoshi blushed a little, as Gotou tugged him closer, to kiss.

He hesitated just a moment – still a little sore, but more than willing to go again if need be. "Okay," he said, and Gotou pulled him closer. "Hey," he said, and laughed as Gotou tucked his face against Masayoshi's neck, inhaling deeply. "What are you doing, Gotou-san, that __tickles!__ "

"You smell __really__ good," Gotou said, sounding a little puzzled.

"I don't usually?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou lifted his head, nuzzling Masayoshi's face.

"No, it's … different." He held Masayoshi's face still, eyes closed and inhaling deeply, nose brushing against Masayoshi's. It was quiet and intimate, and Masayoshi sighed out a contented noise when Gotou kissed him again. "Mm, c'mon," he said, and tugged Masayoshi toward the bathroom.

* * *

"I did some reading," Masayoshi said, as they squeezed together in Gotou's really-too-small-for-both-of-them tub.

"Reading," Gotou said. He was carding his fingers through Masayoshi's hair, rather unusually affectionate. Masayoshi wasn't complaining – a little weirded out, but not complaining one bit.

"Yeah. It's a – that thing, your dick did," Masayoshi said, glad he wasn't facing Gotou because he was turning red anyway. "It's a dog thi-OW, Gotou-san!"

Gotou pinched his arm a second time for good measure. "Not," he said idly. "A __dog.__ "

Masayoshi dug his elbow back into whatever squishy part of Gotou he was resting against, which earned a yelp. "You are __too__ a great big fluffy __dog__ ," he said, splashing the water as he did so.

Gotou grabbed him by his hips and dragged him back against his lap, and Masayoshi felt Gotou's cock, hard and ready, pressing against his cheeks. He hissed through his teeth, hands now gripping the sides of the small tub. "Not a __dog__ ," Gotou growled into his ear, voice all gravelly.

"Not in the water," Masayoshi said as Gotou rubbed his dick against Masayoshi.

"What did you find out?" Gotou murmured, never penetrating him, just rubbing.

"That dogs – and __wolves__ , Gotou-san, don't __pinch__ – have a gland that enlarges when they penetrate." Masayoshi closed his eyes, head tilted back as Gotou kept rubbing against him, slow and steady. "It must be another thing that happens before you shift, like your eyes."

"I never knew." Gotou kissed Masayoshi's shoulder.

"Clearly we're not having enough sex," Masayoshi said, and Gotou actually laughed at that.

"Well, now we know when to avoid so you don't get hurt," Gotou said, and Masayoshi tilted his head back.

"I didn't say __that__ ," he said, and Gotou frowned at him.

"Masayoshi," he said, and when he shifted the tip of his cock slid slightly in, and they both caught their breath. "Oh," Gotou said, as Masayoshi squirmed uncomfortably.

"Not in the __water__ ," Masayoshi repeated, breathless.

"Let's get out," Gotou said.

* * *

"Did you find anything out?" Masayoshi asked later, buried in the rumpled covers, tucked safely under Gotou's arm. The morning sunlight had illuminated the room, casting everything in golden shade.

"Not a thing," Gotou said with a sigh. "No response, didn't pick up any scent, new or old – it was just quiet and cold."

"You still smell like a wet-" Masayoshi started, and Gotou pinched his nose shut. "Oi! Gotou-san." After a moment Gotou released him, and Masayoshi made a face. "Maybe he's left town," he said.

"I'm never that lucky," Gotou said. "I think the cold's just kept him in – it's kept everyone in."

"Except you," Masayoshi said, and Gotou rolled on his side, pulling Masayoshi close. "You're really affectionate today," Masayoshi said after a long moment. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," Gotou said, his voice a little distant.

Masayoshi nestled against him. "We should get up soon."

Gotou kissed the top of his head. "It's Saturday, 'yoshi, don't tell me you've got anything planned."

"Not really," Masayoshi said. "Why, do __you__ have plans?"

"I'll tell you in a bit," Gotou murmured. "Can we just stay like this a little longer?"

Masayoshi wrapped his arms around Gotou's body and snuggled in closer. "Sounds good to me," he murmured.


	18. feb 16th

He didn't go out that night – which was both foolish and dangerous, but he felt so comfortable and relaxed with Masayoshi now, he laid out across his legs as Masayoshi sat on the bed, one hand stroking through his fur slowly as he watched his show. Gotou didn't really watch it – he kept an ear cocked and listened to the dialog, but he knew Masayoshi would want to watch it again later anyway.

So much had happened in the last few days, he barely could process it all. It had taken him most of the day to figure it out, that the core of Masayoshi's scent had __changed__ , and the reason it smelled so good to him was because it was familiar, it reminded him of his own scent. He had the unsettled feeling that was significant, but he didn't know exactly why.

He lay next to Masayoshi in the bed, Masayoshi curled up on his side, one arm thrown over his back and snoring lightly. Gotou tried not to thump his tail lest he wake Masayoshi, but this was – more than nice, more than __comfortable__ – this was the way things were meant to be. He sighed out a long breath, completely relaxed.

How things had changed, in just a few short months.

* * *

"Ugh, it's supposed to snow __again__ ," Masayoshi said from the main room, wrapped up in a blanket with hot tea in his hands. "Why don't you have a kotatsu, Gotou-san, we need to go buy one."

"I don't really have the room for it," Gotou said, making himself coffee.

"We should move." Masayoshi said it as if It were the most natural thing in the world; he couldn't see Gotou's shoulders stiffen from where he was at. "I mean, this place is nice and all but – wouldn't it be great to have actual furniture? I miss having a couch, don't you?"

"It's a little early to think about moving, don't you think?" Gotou asked, seating himself on the edge of the bed. Masayoshi looked over at him, both hands still on his drink. "We'll talk about it later," Gotou said, and Masayoshi nodded.

"So what do you want to do today?" Masayoshi asked idly.

Gotou took a deep breath, looking down at the coffee mug in his hand. "I was thinking," he said, aware of Masayoshi's eyes on him. "Maybe I should tell you a bit about who I think is behind all this."

* * *

 _ _There were five of them, plus him – always a straggler, always an outsider. Gotou sat on the old log, the furthest from the fire as the sun sank behind the trees. The change would be coming soon, he could feel it – and he watched how the others reacted, how some looked as they always did, and others rubbed their arms or hands, clearly uncomfortable, clearly … waiting.__

" _ _No names," he'd said, brushing a hand back through his blond hair. "None at all. We don't interact outside of the moon, we don't discuss this with anyone who isn't a wolf." His eyes, unnatural always, glittered. "Ever."__

 _ _There were women here, two of them – both half-naked, unashamed of it – Gotou looked away, blushing to the tips of his ears which caused titters the first days. Now, he was used to it – this was different, different from the "real" world. "I see you brought back a little shadow," the taller woman said, her hair as black as the night sky, straight and heavy, it fell down her back like a waterfall.__

" _ _I did," he said, clearly amused. "A little shadow, Kage-san, I think that fits you very well."__

 _ _Gotou blushed again.__

* * *

"Kage," Masayoshi breathed.

Gotou sighed. __That__ was a mistake.

* * *

 _ _There was a little cabin in the woods – long since fallen into ill repair, where they stored their overnight bags. Gotou found it easily the next cycle, early in the day – this time he'd fudged the truth less, explained he was going camping with some friends – his mother had lit up at that, that he had__ friends _–_ _ _and he'd spent the bus ride texting__ her _ _.__

 _ _She was more concerned than his mother, she fussed at him until he turned off the cell phone, tucking it away in his backpack and disembarking, prepared for the miles-long hike into the wilderness.__

I don't trust them, Gocchin.

 _ _He was learning a lot from them – things he was eager to learn; how to hunt, how to track – how to control the almost painful urges that nearly overwhelmed him.__

" _ _You're not a person, here," his name was Kiba, golden hair and golden eyes, a predator even on two legs. "You're a wolf."__

 _ _And so he was.__

 _ _It was a different world entirely, and it felt almost like a dream – the scent of other wolves, fighting and grousing and settling down, lying sleepily against each other, worn out from tussling throughout the night. The taste of blood, his first kill, a wild boar he helped the smaller wolf Kiri take down, the way the scent revitalized him, made him bay excitedly at the moon, Kiri lifting his head to join his enthusiastic song to the heavens. Rushing naked to the lake in the morning, dousing in cold water and laughing, splashing at the others as they rinsed off, worn out from a night of running free.__

" _ _I want to find out who bit me," Gotou said, leaned back on his hands, looking into the late afternoon sky.__

" _ _Not everyone knows who their sire is," Hoshi was young, like him - she wore her hair back in a bun, it was streaked through with pink dye, creating complex swirls through the style. "Maybe it's better not to know."__

" _ _Do you know?" Gotou asked her, and she tilted her head.__

" _ _Yeah."__

" _ _What did you do when you found out?"__

" _ _I ripped his throat out," she said cheerfully, without batting an eye.__

" _ _What would you do?" Kiba asked from across the fire-pit, the charred logs empty and cool. "If you knew."__

 _ _Gotou hesitated the barest moment – thinking about the body, blood pooled around it, the woman screaming – and then, inexplicably, thought of__ her. _ _He shook his head, to clear his thoughts. "I don't know," he said, honestly, and Kiba inclined his head.__

 _ _Gotou felt ill at ease around Kiba, even if he was the most informative of the wolves, the one most likely to teach. It was Kiri who taught him to hunt, and Hoshi who taught him to howl – how to do it properly, deep and melodic, moon-song echoing soulfully into a sky unsullied by noise pollution. But it was Kiba who taught him how to be a wolf.__

 _ _And it was Kiba who snarled and slammed him against the side of the cabin when he said he wasn't coming back, teeth too sharp for a human's, face too close, contorted in anger. "You'd__ leave _ _us?"__

" _ _Here I'm a wolf," Gotou had growled right back, not intimidated. "But out there I'm something else, and I don't know what that is yet."__

 _ _The others left with Kiba, as he stalked away from Gotou – most didn't look back. Kiri hesitated, glancing over his shoulder apologetically, and Hoshi lingered. "You shouldn't have said anything," she said, softly – and reached up, on her tip-toes to hug him. "Don't forget your song, Kage-chan."__

 _ _He spent that last cycle alone, back at his old bear-cave, and when he stood on the crest of the hill and looked out over the wooded mountains he felt the strangest feeling of peace – and when the moon-song rang out, distant and faint, several voices joining in – he turned and retreated, sliding into the underbrush.__

 _ _He never went back.__


	19. mar 16th

Masayoshi lay on his stomach on Gotou's bed, a guide of apartment listings before him. "I don't really want to move," Gotou said, standing in front of his closet, hanging clothes. "I like it here."

"I know." Masayoshi flipped a page. "But we need someplace a little bigger, don't you think? Besides, I think your landlady's getting a little tetchy about my living here."

"So find your own apartment." Gotou kept his back to Masayoshi, but still tried to keep the grin off his face as he heard Masayoshi scramble to his knees.

" _ _Gotou-san!__ How can you __say__ that?"

He tried to keep his face as neutral as possible as he glanced back over his shoulder, straight at Masayoshi's perfected pout. He sighed, extra dramatically, and Masayoshi dropped back onto his stomach, making the mattress bounce slightly. "You're making fun of me."

"Maybe a little," Gotou said lightly, closing the closet door. He stretched his arms over his head, didn't really feel like sitting down. Moonrise was still a few hours off, anyway. "So you are __staying in__ tonight, understand?"

Masayoshi's head came up, eyes narrowed. "I am not."

"You're just going to slow me down," Gotou said, matter of fact. "Don't pout at me, it's true."

"Well, you should bite me," Masayoshi said, just as matter of fact. "Then I can definitely help! Two against one."

Gotou felt something cold solidify in his stomach. "Don't even joke about that," he said. "That's not __funny__ , Masayoshi."

"Sorry," Masayoshi glanced back down at his magazine, clearly a little unsettled at the tone shift. "I'm still going to help, though."

"You'll __help__ by staying __put.__ "

Masayoshi lifted his head, eyes narrowed, and they glared at each other for a solid minute, before Gotou sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. "He'll hurt you," he said, leaning back on his hands. "Intentionally, this time."

"I'm not afraid of him," Masayoshi said. "Are you?"

Gotou didn't answer.

* * *

The moon peeked above the horizon before the sun had set. Gotou lay on the bed, head across his paws and stared out at the twilight through the blinds. It wasn't warm yet, by any means – but the snow was long gone, at least. Masayoshi bustled across the apartment, cleaning up his dinner and chattering all the while.

He was going to have to kill someone.

Gotou wondered quietly if Masayoshi had figured that out yet – there was no containment for werewolves – to arrest them, to cart them off was to expose himself as well, to expose them all – and even if, yes, they went that route – no one was equipped to incarcerate a wolf.

And he wouldn't stop killing until Gotou put a stop to him, one way or another.

It was a terrifying thought. This was different, from prey-animals, from things killed to feed on – this was another person, and what was worse was that Gotou wasn't certain it actually __bothered__ him. He knew he was a monster, he had been for years, but Masayoshi … wouldn't look at him the same, after. He might never look at Gotou again. And while that would have been something painful even six months ago he would have been able to deal, but now...?

Now even the thought of it constricted his lungs, he couldn't even __breathe.__

He couldn't let Masayoshi __help__. He'd get killed – or worse, see Gotou kill to protect him.

Gotou heaved out a heavy sigh, which made Masayoshi stop, blanket in hand. "Are you okay, Gotou-san?" he asked, and Gotou didn't lift his head, but he flicked an ear to show he had heard Masayoshi.

Masayoshi hesitated a moment, then brushed his hand over the crest of Gotou's skull, down his neck into his scruff, fingers scritching. Gotou tilted his head slightly, to change the angle of his fingers and let out a more contented noise. (He would never, in his __life__ , live down the fact that he enjoyed Masayoshi's scritches – thank goodness it was something between them alone.)

"It'll be okay, Gotou-san," Masayoshi said softly, and Gotou's ears flicked toward him again.

If he could smile in this form he would – instead he thumped his tail against the bed a few times. Masayoshi smiled at him happily, and Gotou thought to himself fiercely, __I have to protect that.__

Maybe he could just stay in tonight, forget that somewhere, out there was a wolf who had killed his friend, who was targeting him. Maybe they could forget all of it – move into a new apartment, like Masayoshi had suggested, shake it all off and move on.

There, in the distance – faint yet distinctive, was the howl of a wolf.

Gotou got to his feet on the bed, ears and tail alert. Masayoshi stood up as well. "Was that him?"

It was too faint to make out the voice. Gotou tilted his ears back, cocked his head – he wished he could __explain__ , that Masayoshi could understand him like this – but he made a disgruntled noise instead, and smoothly hopped off the bed.

It was a challenge. Not just to him, but to any wolves that could hear. __This is my territory now.__

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, as Gotou paced around the table a few times, trying to decide what he wanted to do. When he swung his attention over to Masayoshi, Masayoshi was halfway out of his clothes, his uniform on underneath. He snorted and Masayoshi ignored him.

There wasn't any true power on this world that would stop Masayoshi when he got it into his mind he was going to do something, so the least he could do was try to harness Masayoshi's stubbornness into something __useful.__ The problem being that Masayoshi didn't exactly speak wolf.

"I'm not going to follow you," Masayoshi said, putting on his helmet. "But I __am__ gonna patrol around here, and if I see any wolves that aren't you, I've got a __plan.__ "

 _ _That plan better be to turn tail,__ Gotou thought, but Masayoshi didn't elaborate further. Gotou wound himself around Masayoshi's legs, snuffling and trying not to show his worry, but it was all but impossible to hide.

Masayoshi was regular squishy flesh, and he could be hurt so easily. Gotou couldn't bear the thought of losing him too. He whined a little, ears back – and Masayoshi crouched down to his level, on one knee they were face to face. "I'll be careful, Gotou-san, I promise," he said, as Gotou sat on his haunches and scoffed. "You just gotta promise me you're be careful too."

He wormed up against Masayoshi and set his snout on Masayoshi's shoulder. Masayoshi wrapped his arms around Gotou, and Gotou inhaled, deeply – Masayoshi's scent had stayed the same from the previous month, different than it had been before and it was familiar now. "You will be careful," Masayoshi said into his fur. "Right?"

Gotou huffed against him and wriggled, tired of being held. It was dark outside, now – the moon was low and fat in the sky, and he could feel the prickles of it calling to him, the sensation skating slowly down his spine.

If he found the wolf and dealt with it tonight, Masayoshi would never have to know what happened.


	20. mar 17th

It had been another long, fruitless night when Gotou butted his head against his apartment door. He had heard the other-wolf, closer now, its song familiar through the early spring air – but still no contact, no closer to a resolution. His tail seemed to move of its own volition where Masayoshi was concerned, but he was tired; not sleepy, just exhausted.

Gotou butted his head against the door a second time, and scratched one paw along it for good measure. Masayoshi might be in the bathroom, or he may even have fallen asleep. It wasn't unheard of, although the sun was already up, and that made it more dangerous for him.

He changed suddenly, swiftly and unexpectedly, crouched naked in front of his own front door. He tried the knob – locked – and fished the backup key out from its hiding place, letting himself in.

The apartment was dark.

Gotou's aggravation turned to ashes in his mouth. "Masayoshi?" he called, standing naked in the genkan, knowing he wasn't present, his scent old and stale. "This isn't funny."

His phone was sitting on the counter, safe where he left it the previous night – he yanked it off and touched the screen, illuminating the time, and zero missed messages. He didn't even bother with texting this time, hitting the call-dial.

It rang, and rang – and then Masayoshi picked up, cheerful as ever. "Gotou-san! Good morning!"

"Where the hell __are__ you?" Gotou snarled, and didn't even bat an eye at the hesitation he heard on the end of the phone.

"Um, I'm – I think it's an old warehouse. It's not far from the karaoke place Mari took us to last month-"

His heart was in his throat. "Are you okay? Why aren't you home?"

"I'm fine, Gotou-san. But you're gonna need to bring a change of clothes with you!" There was a bit of a clatter, and Masayoshi's voice cut out for a second. "I'll see you soon, Gotou-san!"

Gotou stared at his phone, panicked – what had __happened__ , fuck, Masayoshi wasn't __bit__ was he? He got dressed faster than he ever had in his life, a knapsack thrown over his head with a hooded sweatshirt and a pair of jeans inside, and took off running, almost forgetting his shoes.

* * *

It took him an hour to find Masayoshi – the morning commute was in full swing, an ocean of smells that distracted him as he stalked up and down the street, until he caught the faintest whiff of Masayoshi's scent. As soon as he caught it, it lit everything up like a beacon and he followed it single-mindedly until he found an old, abandoned warehouse that wasn't street-facing, and whose supply door was wedged open with a brick.

"I thought you'd be against criminal trespassing," Gotou called as he very cautiously entered the building. He regretted not bringing a flashlight, now – it was dark, but he could smell Masayoshi and that was the most important thing.

"I am!" Masayoshi's voice caught him by surprise – and then there was Masayoshi, resolved out of darkness, wearing his uniform – Gotou breathed a large sigh of relief, and then grabbed Masayoshi by the helmet he was still wearing.

"Idiot, don't __scare__ me like that," he said, and then tilted Masayoshi's face just right so he could kiss him. "Why the hell did you have me bring you clothes, you could have come home like that. Everyone knows that you're Samurai Flamenco now."

"It's not for __me__." Masayoshi said, catching Gotou's hand on his head with both of his and holding it. He half-turned, missing Gotou's completely confused expression, and tugged him into the main part of the warehouse. "It's for the wolf I caught."

* * *

He had brown hair now – not light like Masayoshi's, but with a shorter crew cut. Gotou hesitated in the doorway as dark eyes flickered up to him, and then widened in surprise. "See?" Masayoshi said, from over his shoulder. "I __told__ you it would be fine-"

"Kiri," Gotou said, stunned.

He laughed, just as surprised – Masayoshi had tied him up to a chair, although how he'd managed that when Kiri was a wolf Gotou had no idea. "Kage-san," Kiri said, and lolled his head to the side. "I thought I smelled something familiar about him."

Gotou ignored that, hand tight on his knapsack, Masayoshi silent at his shoulder. "Are you the one we're looking for?" he asked. No elaboration was necessary, he saw the way Kiri's shoulders tightened. He glanced away.

"He killed Kaze, and Ashi," Kiri said. "He's been after me for a while, but I've always been a quick little shit." His mouth quirked. "He's come for you then, I take it." Kiri's gaze traveled over Gotou's shoulder, to Masayoshi. "But that isn't something that should be discussed in the company of outsiders," he said, and looked away again.

"'yoshi's not an outsider," Gotou said. He dropped the knapsack on the ground and started untying the restraints – which were easy enough to tear through. Kiri had stayed put of his own will, he realized, because he could have torn through these knots easily.

"I know he's your mate, but he's still not a wolf," Kiri said, and Gotou hesitated.

"What?"

Kiri cocked his head, regarding Masayoshi – who had started to turn pink under his helmet. "Don't tell me you don't know," he said, and glanced down at Gotou, who was staring at him. "You've knotted him. That makes him your mate – it's an old werewolf custom …" At Gotou's wide-eyed expression, he sighed, amused. "You didn't know."

"Does that mean we're, like-" Masayoshi's eyes were huge. " _ _Married?__ "

"Not now, 'yoshi," Gotou said, and cut through the last of the restraints. Kiri rubbed his wrists and watched Gotou with some amusement.

"Never would have figured you for gay," Kiri murmured, as Gotou threw the knapsack at him and turned his back, so that Kiri could pull on the pair of pants Gotou had brought. "Especially with the way you used to stare at Hoshi."

Gotou turned pink to the tips of his ears, and Masayoshi looked at __him__. "And with your __girlfriend__ ," Masayoshi said, scandalized – and Gotou took a large step over to Masayoshi, grabbed him by the helmet and yanked. Masayoshi yelped as the helmet came slightly off his head, and then snapped back down when Gotou released it.

He glanced over to Kiri. "Hoshi's dead," he said.

"Yeah," Kiri said quietly. "I know."

* * *

"Do you have any idea what's going on?" Gotou asked Kiri, seated across the booth. He glanced over to Masayoshi, who had put on some semblance of normal clothing over his uniform. "It's okay, he can handle himself," he added, and Masayoshi beamed.

"He's still not a wolf." Kiri licked his lips and leaned forward a little, staring at Masayoshi. "I could fix that."

Gotou's hand slammed on the table, palm-first. Masayoshi jumped, but Kiri turned a lazy expression on Gotou, clearly unapologetic. "Just a suggestion, no need to get upset," he said mildly.

"No one __touches__ Masayoshi," Gotou said, in a low voice.

"He's __your__ mate," Kiri said and smiled when the waitress brought them drinks. She smiled back politely, and then excused herself – and Gotou watched Kiri watch her leave. "He's killed the whole pack," he said suddenly. "Just you an' me are left."

"Why?" Gotou asked and Kiri shrugged loosely.

"The Blood Moon is coming," he said.


	21. mar 18th

__It was Kaze who spun the tale as they sat around the late afternoon's fire and ate. He was much older than the other wolves, he knew more of the lore even than Kiba, who lingered outside the circle. They all listened with rapt attention about how when the moon rose full and red, heavy with blood__ _ _in the late night sky, that everything was different.__

" _ _Not all wolves transform under the Blood Moon," he said. "It is a reprieve, a rest from the cycle that consumes us – but those who do, they're not like the others. Their legacy is rife with old magic, and runs deeper and older than us all."__

* * *

"There's nothing to the legend," Gotou said, standing outside, lit cigarette in hand.

"You weren't with the pack during a Blood Moon," Kiri said. He was shorter than Gotou, by a half head – he had frowned at the cigarette but Gotou ignored him. He glanced slyly at Gotou. "You change, then?"

"Yeah. Don't you?"

Kiri chewed the inside of his cheek and didn't quite answer. "Kiba didn't," he said softly.

They stood in silence for a few moments, watching the foot traffic in front of the restaurant. Masayoshi emerged finally, having paid the tab, and Kiri stepped away. "Thanks for lunch," he grunted, and Masayoshi inclined his head.

"It's the least I could do, Kiri-san," he said cheerfully.

"He won't do anything tonight," Kiri said, and glanced back at Kiba. "He's waiting until the Blood Moon. You get that, right?"

"Yeah," Gotou said. "You'll be in touch?"

Kiri nodded. He raised a hand in a half-wave, before stepping into the flow of pedestrians that had built up on a weekday afternoon. Masayoshi put his hands on his hips and rocked forward on his feet. "I'm tired, Gotou-san," he said. "Let's go home?"

"Okay," Gotou said, still unable to shake the feeling that something else was wrong here. "Yeah, let's."

* * *

They fell into bed together, Masayoshi exhausted and Gotou himself just worn out from everything that had happened. Masayoshi had some meetings he was supposed to attend, Gotou answered Ishihara's call and explained that Masayoshi was sick in bed still – he would probably be fine later, but he was still asleep and Gotou couldn't bear to wake him.

When he put down the phone, he realized that he hadn't been as sneaky and subtle as he thought, Masayoshi had one eye cracked open and was watching him.

"You shouldn't lie, Gotou-san," he slurred, still half asleep.

"It's just a little one," Gotou murmured, climbing back onto the bed. Masayoshi rolled onto his back as Gotou dipped his head to kiss him gently.

"You still shouldn't lie," Masayoshi insisted.

Gotou hesitated, staring down at him. "My whole life is built on lies, 'yoshi," he said – his heart froze in his chest, but Masayoshi put his hands on Gotou's cheeks and stared up at him, brow furrowed.

"You don't have to lie anymore," he said, and Gotou quirked a small smile.

"If I was found out," he said, covering Masayoshi's hand on his face. "They'd take me from you, you know?"

"I wouldn't let them!" Masayoshi said fiercely. He sat up under Gotou, on his elbows now, and Gotou shifted, flopping onto his side on the mattress beside Masayoshi. "I wouldn't, Gotou-san, I'll protect you!"

He closed his eyes, tired to his very bones. "Yeah," he said, not willing to face the argument.

"Besides," Masayoshi said, sitting up more, now. "I'm your mate, aren't I?"

Gotou's eyes flew open. He'd __forgotten__ about that, with everything else that Kiri had told him. "Masayoshi," he said, sitting up as well. "That's-"

"You didn't know," Masayoshi said, blushing. "That's okay, Gotou-san, but … I kinda wanted a ceremony anyway." He leaned over, into Gotou's space, nose brushing his, eyes bright. "Next time though, you better mean it."

Gotou brushed his hand over Masayoshi's cheek – brought them that heartbeat closer, so he could kiss Masayoshi, his stomach roiling as the words slipped out despite himself. "I __do__ mean it," he said, and Masayoshi's eyes got wide. "Idiot," he breathed. "Don't put words in my mouth, okay?"

"Gotou-san!" Masayoshi said, throwing his arms over Gotou's shoulders, and burying his face in Gotou's shoulder. Gotou wasn't all the way upright and he fell backward onto the mattress under Masayoshi's weight, huffing out a pained breath.

He closed his eyes, Masayoshi's weight warm and comfortable - he felt just right in Gotou's arms now. "Don't go out tonight," Masayoshi said into Gotou's shoulder, and Gotou brushed his hands through Masayoshi's hair.

"Not tonight, 'yoshi," he said, and Masayoshi shook his head and raised it finally.

"I don't mean for __that,"__ he said, blushing. "I just meant I want you to stay with me tonight."

Masayoshi watched him, and he continued to brush his fingers through Masayoshi's hair. He thought about the blood moon – and closed his eyes.

"Next month," he said. "It's the lunar eclipse, Masayoshi."

"The Blood Moon?" Masayoshi asked, still laying across him. "What happens?"

"I don't know," he said softly, staring past Masayoshi at the ceiling. Daylight was etched upon the tile there. So many things had happened – and his suspension was almost over, he'd be back to work soon, and that would make things infinitely more complicated. "I thought I did, but..."

"He'll come for you then, huh?" Masayoshi said. "Kiba."

Gotou nodded. Masayoshi's face changed – it was a familiar expression, that determination – and Gotou smiled at it. "I won't let him hurt you, Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, and Gotou tugged him back down. "I know you won't," he said.

* * *

The moon rose late, the sun already gone from the sky. Gotou lay on the bed still, despite Masayoshi's tutting about fur all over the sheets, and stared out the cracked-open blinds. He couldn't see the moon from this angle, but he could feel it, a pressure system that was cooking beyond his control.

Masayoshi lay beside him, attention on the television, one hand sitting gently on Gotou's back, fingers occasionally scratching into his fur.

Mates, huh? This wasn't so bad. This, he could live with – even with the moon under his skin, urging him up and to roam, to try to find Kiba before the Blood Moon, before Kiri could-

 _ _Kiri.__

Gotou's ears flicked. How convenient that he showed up. He couldn't quite sense his play – but Kiri had always been straightforward, and he'd never given Gotou any reason to doubt him.

It would be easier, without Masayoshi. He'd be able to kill Kiba with no regrets and move on.

That didn't mean it was better.

He sighed out a noise, and whined – Masayoshi lifted his hand, and Gotou got to his feet on the mattress and stretched. He got down off the bed and did a small circle of the apartment, just stretching his legs – and when he got back up on the bed Masayoshi was sitting up and watching him curiously.

"Everything okay?" he asked, and Gotou wagged his tail – and then he lowered his head and butted Masayoshi in the shoulder. __I love you,__ he thought, and Masayoshi caught his head and smiled.

"I love you too, Gotou-san," he said.

* * *

" _ _If you kill a transformed wolf on the blood moon," Sanae said, leaned forward, gaze intent on Kaze. "You gain their power."__

 _ _Kiba turned back to the fire, voice sharp. "Sanae."__

 _ _Kaze shook his head. "The Blood Moon reveals us for what we truly are," he said. "Men, wolves – or," he added, glancing at Kiba. "Monsters."__


	22. apr 14th

The full moon rose Monday evening hazy and bright in the twilight sky, sunlight still slanted across the highest skyscrapers. It wasn't tinged red yet, that would happen on the apex, during the eclipse. There was no need for him to go out tonight, to court danger so soon before all this would be resolved – but there was something new in the air, something deeper and older than the feeling that crept under his skin before the transformation, before he blinked out of existence as a human and became a wolf.

Masayoshi even noticed it, somewhat – he had woken up this morning, rolling atop Gotou and kissing him, initiating as if they hadn't had sex every morning this week. This time it was slow and tender, gentle touches and passionate kisses. Masayoshi still had to go to work – Ishihara had noticed a pattern of his call-outs and had threatened to show up at Gotou's doorstep this month. The general election was going to be held soon, and while Masayoshi was absolutely firm about declining the position, there didn't seem to be any way to stop the juggernaut of the political machine.

So they couldn't do anything frantic – at least not today. He knew exactly what Masayoshi was doing, and he couldn't really blame him – he himself didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow. Neither of them spoke about it, but it loomed like a specter.

Masayoshi came out of the bathroom to Gotou as a wolf, tail held erect and paws on the open window, nose to the sky. "What is it?" Masayoshi asked, and Gotou's ears flicked back before he half-turned his head. He gave one brief wag of his tail, and Masayoshi asked, "is it Kiri?"

He nodded, and Masayoshi looked out the window as well, but could not see the other wolf. Gotou could sense him – he'd caught his scent earlier in the day. Kiri was out there, waiting for him.

"I'll see you in the morning," Masayoshi had said, a touch of something in his voice that Gotou didn't take the time to identify. He slid out the door past Masayoshi and into the spring evening, ears and nose on high alert.

He found Kiri pawing through some trash, thought about how Masayoshi would have a fit if he saw the destruction of the carefully bagged garbage, and snorted to himself. He was a smaller wolf than Gotou, brown and grey – he resembled more an ill-fed dog. Kiri lifted his head and growled – but then straightened further when he saw that it was Gotou.

The two werewolves looked at each other silently, and then slipped off into the growing darkness together.

* * *

It had been long years since Gotou had hunted with another wolf. Their prey would not make the mistake of being found tonight, not with the objective so close at hand – but that did not stop them from scouring his corner of the city, to the edges of the territory Gotou had long ago defined as his.

Once it became apparent that there was no fight imminent, they both relaxed; running together through the deserted streets, scattering small feral cats. There was nothing quite as satisfying as raising your head to the moon only to have another join in your song – __we are ready for you__ , Gotou thought, as their howls went unanswered to the April sky.

* * *

The moon set early, just as pink started to streak the sky. Gotou hadn't gone home yet – but Kiri had the clothes he'd "borrowed", and while he was still barefoot it was better than nothing. They sat on the swings in the park, Gotou smoking a cigarette.

"What are you going to do, once this is over?" Gotou asked, bare feet already brown from the dirt.

"Move on, probably." Kiri's hair was spiked funny, hands loose on the swing's chains. "I'm not for the city."

"I didn't think I was, either," Gotou said, and Kiri looked over at him, then looked away.

"You don't understand," Kiri said softly. "You've always been different, Kage."

"You don't have to call me that anymore," Gotou said.

Kiri looked at the sky. "Yeah, I do."

* * *

Masayoshi wasn't out of bed yet, although he lifted his head when Gotou let himself in. "You're late," Masayoshi said, voice crusty with sleep. "Moon's been down for a while."

Gotou shed his clothes across the floor and crawled into bed with Masayoshi, who yawned and rubbed his eyes as Gotou knelt over him. He was breathing hard, almost panting, and Masayoshi rubbed his thigh with his hand, staring up at Gotou and Gotou couldn't even describe the emotion in the moment as he leaned down and kissed Masayoshi.

"Had to talk," he said, his voice no longer wolf-rough, back to normal. Masayoshi moved his hand up to his face, stroked his cheek – and Gotou captured that and kissed it as well.

"When this is all over," Masayoshi said. "You'll marry me, right?"

He blushed hard, but there was no shame hidden there, not any more. "I already said I would," he murmured, getting down low and close. "Hey, now," he said as he realized that Masayoshi's eyes had gone wet. "Why are you crying?"

"I'm not," Masayoshi said, and scrubbed at his eyes – but Gotou caught his hand.

"You can't lie to me, Masayoshi," he said.

Masayoshi looked away, pinned under Gotou's weight on the bed. "What if," he said, whispered, the pain in his throat and Gotou understood. "What if I can't protect you?"

"I don't need you to protect me," Gotou shifted just a little, tugging the sheet back up over them. "I'll be fine."

"I want you to bite me," Masayoshi said, completely serious. "I want to be able to fight with you, Gotou-san."

"No," Gotou said, tilting his head in and touching their foreheads. "This world isn't for you, 'yoshi."

Masayoshi sighed out a breath and Gotou kissed him gently, rolling onto his side and dragging Masayoshi with him. Masayoshi wrapped his arms around Gotou's chest and they kissed again, Gotou brushing the half-dried tears from Masayoshi's eyes. "Promise me," Gotou said suddenly, fiercely, and Masayoshi stopped.

"Gotou-san?" he said, uncertain.

"Promise me that you won't do anything stupid tonight," he said, and Masayoshi swallowed, and nodded.

"I promise, Gotou-san."

* * *

Gotou thought, terrified to himself, __Masayoshi wants to be a wolf.__

He couldn't let that happen. No matter what. No matter __what.__

Even if it meant leaving this behind, he couldn't let Masayoshi get trapped in this curse as well. He pressed his forehead to Masayoshi's back, then lifted it and kissed it slowly, as Masayoshi let out a low, contented moan – lying on his side still, leg hiked up and over Gotou's as they slowly moved together.

There was no way out of this that didn't end in broken hearts. He thought for the first time in weeks of the unanswered mail in his cellphone, and was brought back to the present by Masayoshi's squirm as he pushed himself back onto Gotou, seeking something harder, __faster__...

"I love you, Gotou-san," Masayoshi gasped, hand over Gotou's on his chest, fingers linked with his own, and Gotou pressed another kiss to the back of his neck.

"I know."

* * *

The sun hadn't quite set yet – Gotou could feel the electricity under his skin, his eyes had already changed by the time they met up with Kiri. They both wore dark sunglasses even in the dying light of day, to mask the change.

Kiri looked between them, and sighed. "You two stink like sex," he said, and Masayoshi turned the same shade as his hooded shirt.

"Told you the shower wouldn't matter," Gotou said idly.

"Still can't believe you bagged the hero that saved the world," Kiri said teasingly, and Masayoshi turned indignant.

"Gotou-san helped!" he said, and Kiri raised an eyebrow at Gotou, who sighed.

"Are you ready for this?" Kiri asked him.

Gotou hesitated, and then shook his head. "No," he said. "Are you?"

"Yeah," Kiri said, and showed a mouth full of too-sharp teeth. "Shall we?"


	23. apr 15th

__The first time he changed, he didn't know what was going on. The panic, pain and fear overrode everything, he was trapped in his clothes, suffocating – and he lost himself completely that night. He did not remember much – brief flashes of cognizance, of self-awareness before he woke up naked in the dirt, miles from home. There was blood on his hands and in his mouth, and while he ached at the same time he felt strangely refreshed, like he had just woken from the best sleep of his life.__

 _ _It took him almost three full cycles to accept that he hadn't gone completely mad, that this was just something that happened to him now, his life tied eternally to the moon's phases. He told her all about it, she worried for him, offered advice, support – she was the only one he told.__

 _ _It wasn't like he had any friends.__

* * *

Masayoshi held the knapsack, Gotou's jacket folded in his arms. It was twilight now, dark already in the alley. This area was more residential – it was better suited to this, less foot traffic as the sun set. Being a weeknight meant that there weren't as many people out and about, they'd be heading home. "You really think the park is the best place?" Masayoshi asked, gaze averted as they stripped.

"It's big – and not likely to have a lot of civilians about," Gotou said, tucking his clothes into Masayoshi's knapsack. "And if there are any, I'll scare them away." His voice had gotten deeper, rockier – the moon must be close to peeking over the horizon. Masayoshi jumped a little at Gotou's touch – his hand rested on Masayoshi's shoulder. "'yoshi," Gotou murmured. Masayoshi turned his head up and looked Gotou in the eye – golden and glimmering, inhuman.

He closed his eyes when Gotou kissed him.

"Gross," Kiri rumbled from behind the dumpster. Gotou let out a great heaving sigh, and Kiri emerged, holding his clothes. Masayoshi flushed and immediately looked away, as Gotou tucked his clothing into the knapsack as well. "So, uh," Kiri said, head craned to the sky. "Guess I should warn you, then."

"Warn me?" Gotou repeated, as Masayoshi closed up the knapsack and swung it over his shoulder. He'd __wanted__ to wear his Samurai Flamenco uniform – they were fighting __evil,__ he should be outfitted as such – but Gotou had told him firmly that they were trying to keep a low profile, and people tended to follow him with cell phones out when he went out in costume now. "Warn me about __what?__ "

"I'm not exactly going to be pretty, when the moon comes up," Kiri said, head back, eyes closed.

Gotou glanced at Masayoshi, eyebrow raised – and then he shuddered. Masayoshi took a step back, looking up at the sky, gone to dark violet between the buildings. They couldn't see the sun OR moon from here – but when he looked back Gotou was gone – the black wolf stood in his place, paws braced apart, head lowered.

Kiri, however...

If he hadn't known, he wouldn't know what he was looking at. The creature was larger than Gotou – not quite wolf, not quite man, crouched in a painful looking hobble. " _ _Shit__ ," Masayoshi said.

"Only happens," Kiri actually spoke in that form, his voice twisted and mangled, completely unrecognizable. "On the blood moon."

Gotou lifted his head and looked back at Masayoshi – and Masayoshi held his hand mid-chest. "Gotou-san," he said, awed. "You're __bigger.__ "

Gotou huffed in exasperation, shaking himself once over, before pacing to the end of the alley and back again. He looked significantly at Kiri, and then to Masayoshi.

"Don't you dare," Masayoshi said, eyes wide with the realization.

"Sorry," Kiri said, and when Gotou bolted out of the alley and into the dusk Kiri followed, both moving faster than Masayoshi thought possible.

* * *

There would be no howls tonight. Gotou put his head down and ran, paws pounding the pavement – there were a handful of startled pedestrians who got out of his way, but the further he got the more the population thinned out.

This had always been the plan – leave Masayoshi behind, let him be as mad as he wanted, he was __safe__ if he wasn't with them. He'd lost Kiri blocks back, he wasn't as fast, running hunched and hobbled, but he'd at least be able to follow Gotou's scent.

They weren't going to the park.

Gotou practically flew up the stairs to the shrine, stopping under the torii, tail up as he looked back the way he'd come. The city lights were bright and familiar – and he could see, across the city, the peek of a copper moon over the buildings.

He'd felt it, months ago, when they'd visited this very shrine for New Year's. He'd investigated here as well, and he'd caught the old scent, faded and faint. Kiba had been here. There would be no one at the shrine tonight.

Ears erect, he felt the fur prickle along his spine. He wasn't alone.

* * *

" _ _So what do you think of Hoshi?" Ashi sat astride a tree branch, limbs dangling like a giant cat. "Pretty piece of work, eh? I heard she was gonna be an idol, before this."__

 _ _Gotou ignored him, as he often did, a textbook open in his lap.__

" _ _He's probably got a girlfriend," Sanae said in a sing-song voice, tossing a log into the fire-pit to stoke the small cooking fire. "Who worries about him while he's here, don't you, Kage-kun?"__

" _ _It's none of your business," Gotou said, and Ashi "ooh'd," from above him.__

" _ _Is she cute?" he asked,__

 _ _Gotou closed his textbook and stood up. Ashi had already started to scramble away but Gotou caught his foot by the ankle and yanked, causing him to fall – but with his iron grip on the branch he ended up hanging like a sloth instead.__

" _ _If you know what's good for you," Kiba said, appearing out of nowhere, and Ashi scrabbled and almost fell completely down trying to dismount. "You'll let her go, Kage. It's not safe for regular people to be with us."__

" _ _I'll keep that in mind," Gotou said.__

* * *

There was a brief moment of absolute panic as she approached him from the shadow of the main building. Her hair was straight, slightly longer than he remembered, than it had been that day he saw her last. She was wearing a funeral kimono.

 _ _It wasn't possible.__

His heart had stopped beating, he couldn't breathe – there was no scent, no presence. There had never been a body found, there had never __been__ a funeral – and that more than anything grounded him. He lowered his head and closed his eyes.

Surprisingly, his first thought was of Masayoshi.

He cast that aside, eyes snapping open. It wasn't real, __she__ wasn't real – and he snarled, charging the apparition. He never got a good look at her face, it dissolved like smoke and now he could smell, he could __sense__ and as he turned back to the building he saw her now, standing on the porch with her hair done up in an elaborate coiffure, wearing a brightly colored kimono.

It wasn't __her__.

"Whatever you saw," Sanae called as she stepped down from the porch into geta. "It upset you, Kage-kun. Your sins come back to haunt you?"

He stared at her, ears back. She hadn't turned with the moon. She didn't smell right, either – but he couldn't tell if that was the fact she hadn't changed, or something else. "You're wondering where Kiba is," she said, shuffling out of the shadow of the building. "Good. That means you fell for it."

Gotou heard Kiri on the shrine's steps, wheezing and huffing as he finally caught up. "Kage," he croaked, and Gotou didn't look back at him.

"Oh," Sanae said, a little surprised. "Kiri-kun, you're still alive? I thought for certain you'd been taken care of, already."

"Where's," Kiri said, and looked to Gotou, who was still staring at Sanae. "Where's Kiba, Sanae?"

"He won't be joining us this evening," she said, raising one hand, palm up – it glowed faintly green in the moonlight. "Or ever again, really, but you don't need to worry about that either."

"Witchbreed," Kiri hissed, and Sanae closer her hand, the light extinguished.

"It's so funny," she said, and lowered her hand. "Years, I spent with the pack, and no one noticed. Not a one of you. I've never been a wolf."

"You __hexed__ us," he growled, and Gotou growled at the same time. She laughed a little, one hand touching her chest lightly.

"No, because unlike the rest of you, Kaze had seen witchbreed before, he'd smelled their magic. I simply wore the pelt of a wolf and ran with you – and transmutory magic did the rest." She dropped her hand so that they both were before her. "You never noticed, Kiri-kun, that I didn't change with the others?"

Gotou's ears flicked and he lifted his head suddenly as a familiar scent appeared, faintly in the distance. __No,__ he thought, as Sanae made a noise of disapproval at his distraction.

"You should be paying attention to __me__ ," she said sharply, and Gotou suddenly felt something around his throat, around his scruff, yanking him forward. He yelped, paws scrabbling in the dirt, trying to brace himself.

"So you understand then?" she said. "The blood moon, it reveals a wolf's true power. Kiba had none, you see, he did not change – Kiri dear, is a scion of the line of Judas – but you, my Kage-kun – you are exactly what I need."

* * *

"Let him __go!__ "

Masayoshi was trying his hardest to keep his breathing under control – he may not have his costume or his weapons on hand but that didn't mean he could let his image slip as his posed, one arm outstretched, pointing at the woman.

He was going to yank on Gotou's ears until he yelped – they'd __discussed__ the shrine, before settling on the park, did he really think that Masayoshi was that stupid he'd forget the first place that came up? There wasn't time for that now – and since Masayoshi didn't have much by the way of weapons on him, so he was going to have to move, and move fast.

Gotou shook his entire body once, her distraction enough that he was able to yank himself free of her hold. He ran toward Masayoshi and slid slightly, as he put himself between Masayoshi and the woman, his head down, ears back and snarling.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, and Gotou didn't look back at him.

"My, who is __this?__ " the woman said, taking a step out of the shadows. "He smells like a wolf, Kage-kun, who is he?"

Kiri moved then, fast, coming up on her right side. She flicked her arm and he let out a shriek, a dagger handle sprouting from his chest before he fell, sliding in the dirt. He didn't move again.

"Kiri-kun!" Masayoshi yelled.

Gotou moved – head down, he charged her, eyes blazing. She deflected him, somehow, stepping aside like he hadn't even tried to just take her head off. "You," she said, addressing Masayoshi again, eyes glittering in the moonlight. "Wolf-kin, what is your measure in all this?"

"I'm not-" Masayoshi said, then shook his head just slightly, posing anew. "I'm here to help __stop__ you," he declared. "I won't let monsters run free, in my city!"

"Hm," Sanae said, raising one hand and pulling out a small pistol. "I can't leave any witnesses to the ritual, and it doesn't sound as though you'll be much use."

"Where did you get that," Masayoshi said indignantly. "Those are illegal-!"

Gotou snarled, already in mid-air. Sanae half-turned to him, pistol raised, and shot him.

* * *

Masayoshi had always thought it silly that people said time slowed to a stop – it never slowed down for him, not when he fought King Torture, not when he was piloting Flamen Robo with the others – and not even now, when Gotou's body slammed into the woman's, less a pounce and more a controlled fall.

He couldn't __move__ , what was wrong with him – she shoved Gotou off her, and Gotou didn't move, he couldn't even see the rise and fall of his chest and Masayoshi couldn't move himself, he couldn't breathe – it was like someone popped his batteries out, his functions were gone. "Hrf," the woman said, staggering to her feet, the blood stain large and obvious on her brightly-colored kimono. "You __ruined__ my kimono," she said, and then moved quickly, to Kiri's form, where she finally got the dagger loose.

"Can't forget the ceremonial dagger," she explained, looking up at Masayoshi.

 _ _Gotou wasn't moving.__

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, staring at him. His ear didn't even twitch. He felt sick to his stomach – and then all at once everything hit him and he was moving, knapsack in both hands and yelling, charging the woman.

She looked up at him, startled – silver dagger in her hand but when it flashed through the air this time it met resistance in the knapsack, which Masayoshi used to fling the weapon away. "I will __not__ ," she snarled, catching his wrist with one hand, a sickly green light flaring out from her hand and up his arm. "Be thwarted __again.__ "

It __burned__ , not hot like fire – Masayoshi tried to wrench his wrist away, but she had him tight. "I can __use__ you," she said, now that he was close, recognizing him under the ball cap. "It'd be a waste to kill you, you're __useful-__ "

"I thought," Gotou's voice was nothing more than a growl, heavy and distorted. "You just wanted to be a __wolf__ , Sanae."

Masayoshi's head snapped toward Gotou – he was on his feet, or most of the way to it, limbs shaking slightly but eyes clear and intent on them both. "Gotou-san!" Masayoshi almost sobbed in relief – and then he blinked. "You can __talk?__ "

Sanae – now that she had a name, Masayoshi remembered, one of the least-spoken of the pack – released his arm. The burning sensation didn't quite go away, but it faded and he staggered back a step, hand wrapped around his injured wrist. "Okay," Sanae said. "This is just getting _ _ridiculous.__ We're on a timeframe here, and I am __not__ waiting another six months."

Her eyes got __wide__ , suddenly – and Kiri's front paw, hand, some grotesque mixture of the two wrapped around her neck from behind. "Missed my heart," he hissed, lifting her so that her feet barely scraped the dirt and stone.

"Don't kill her," Gotou snapped at Kiri, as Sanae scrabbled at his grip with both her hands, starting to turn colors. Masayoshi __yelped__ as the burning in his arm got more intense, and Gotou swung his head over to Masayoshi, limping a little painfully toward him.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, putting his uninjured hand into Gotou's fur, finding it tacky with blood. "You're __hurt__ , Gotou-san, where-?"

"It's fine," Gotou nosed at his face, then down to his arm, recoiling a bit. "What did she __do?__ "

"It burns," Masayoshi said, lifting his hand. His wrist was red, and warm to the touch – and when Gotou brought his nose in close again they both could see faint green lines running up his arm, under the sleeve.

"Sanae," Gotou growled, and even as he lifted his head there was a sickening crack. They both looked up in horror as Kiri dropped the now-lifeless body to the ground, breathing hard and still bleeding from his chest. " _ _Kiri!__ "

Masayoshi let out a low, pained noise. Gotou's head swiveled to him again, ears back – and then to Kiri.

"She wouldn't have stopped," Kiri said, pained. "How were you going to contain her, Kage?"

" _ _She did something to Masayoshi,__ " Gotou kept his head low, and teeth exposed.

"He's been tainted," Kiri said, dropping to four limbs, to match Gotou – larger than he was, snarling. "Witchbreed must __die__."

"If you touch him, I'll kill you," Gotou's growl slid low.

They squared off, neither moving an inch, both growling and showing teeth. Suddenly Masayoshi let off another pained noise, which slid into a relieved sound. "Gotou-san," Masayoshi breathed. "It's stopped – look!"

Gotou didn't move his head at first, but then glanced back at Masayoshi – whose arm was still reddened, but the strange green lines were gone. Kiri snorted and lowered his head, shaking it. "He's still been tainted," he said, but stepped back.

"Go," Gotou said. "Before I change my mind."

Kiri flicked his ear, head low – and then turned and ran, into the darkness.

* * *

Masayoshi's scent had changed again. Gotou rested his chin on Masayoshi's shoulder as he wrapped both his arms around Gotou, eyes squeezed tight, trying not to make a sound as he cried into Gotou's fur. It worried him – it was an acrid undertone, like smoke and sulpher.

"I thought you were __dead__ ," Masayoshi said, voice muffled.

"I'm not," Gotou said, although he wasn't quite certain he hadn't been. He didn't remember hitting the ground – but he remembered a cool, familiar hand brushing back through his fur, white kimono brushing over his snout – and it gave him the chills. "I told you, I heal up __fast__ under the moon-"

Then Masayoshi reached up, grabbed both of his ears and __yanked.__ Gotou snarl-yelped, and Masayoshi said, savagely, "How long have you been able to __talk__ like this, Gotou-san?"

His eyes were red, his face tear-streaked and absolutely furious. Gotou shook his head, then leaned forward and licked Masayoshi's cheek. "I can't," he said. "It must be the blood moon. I've never had anyone to talk to during it, I had no idea."

Masayoshi sighed, seated on the cool stone. He looked back, at the crumpled form behind them. "We can't leave her," he said. "It's not right."

"I'm surprised you didn't want to go after Kiri," Gotou said. Masayoshi got up slowly and walked to the body – and Gotou followed.

"I can't believe magic is real," Masayoshi said, one hand holding his other wrist loosely.

"You fought an alien," Gotou said. "And … whatever the hell From Beyond was, I'm not even sure." His ears went back. "I can't believe that's your takeaway from this, 'magic is real', I am a fucking talking __wolf__ -"

Masayoshi leaned down and wrapped his arm around Gotou's head. "Gotou-san," he said, tired. "Let's go home."


	24. apr 16th

Masayoshi woke from a restless sleep to daylight decorating the far wall of the apartment. He blinked muzzily at the sunbeams and tried to catch the tail end of his dream – it felt important, weirdly important, but it eluded him.

His wrist ached, low and dull in the muscle, and he lifted his right hand off the pillow and stared at it. The redness from the previous evening had disappeared, same with the weird green lines. He had no idea what that was about, but aside from the ache in his arm there was no evidence of it, so he dismissed the thought.

He could hear Gotou clattering about in the kitchen area, and he sat up slowly and rubbed his eye with one hand. "Gotou-san?" he said, and Gotou's head popped around the doorway, looking far too relieved for Masayoshi to be comfortable with.

"You're awake, finally," he said, and Masayoshi squinted up at the wall clock.

Masayoshi dropped his hand. "Is it really almost six?" he said, galled. "Why did you let me sleep so long?"

"I didn't," Gotou said. "You wouldn't wake up." He ducked back into the kitchen for a moment, there was a clatter of dishes and then he returned, wiping his hands off on his jeans and sitting heavily on the mattress beside Masayoshi's legs. He leaned forward and put the back of his hand against Masayoshi's forehead, which seemed odd because Masayoshi didn't feel feverish. "You feeling okay?"

Masayoshi blinked slowly, as Gotou dropped his hand. "I feel … fine, Gotou-san, a little warm, but..."

Gotou picked up his right hand and held it palm up, before lowering his head and inhaling. Masayoshi felt tingles shoot up his spine at the behavior, but Gotou dropped his hand and made a face, like he had smelled something sour.

"You're sure?" he asked, looking at Masayoshi intently, in a way that made Masayoshi feel weirdly nervous.

"I guess I'm hungry," he said.

* * *

They ate at the table as they always did, but Masayoshi couldn't shake the sense that something had __changed__. At Masayoshi's insistence they had called a tip in to the police about the body, but there was nothing on the news about it. "I'll ask tomorrow," Gotou said, weirdly calm as he sat with his back to the bed, bowl in hand.

Masayoshi looked down at his own bowl. The noodles hadn't tasted quite right to him but he ate a little before setting it down and away. "Should we talk?" he said, and looked up at Gotou's expression to judge. "Things … __happened."__

"It's done," Gotou said, almost gently. "The pack is done, no one else should ever come looking for me." He gave Masayoshi an uncertain smile. "Things can go back to normal, now."

 _ _Normal.__

Masayoshi looked back down at his bowl of noodles. He wasn't scared of Gotou, quite the opposite – but this had been an eye-opener. He'd asked for peace and by all accounts the Will of the Universe had told him the world would be boring, with no new enemies to fight … but this flew in the face of all of it.

"Yeah," Masayoshi said quietly. "Normal."

* * *

Masayoshi was subdued, and it worried Gotou.

He sat on the bed again, having never dressed or showered, already yawning. Gotou kissed the top of his head. "Leave the door unlocked?" he said, and Masayoshi looked up at him, squinted, confused. "I'm going out."

"Don't kill Kiri," Masayoshi said.

"I'm not," he said. "I just – we need to wrap some things up, between us."

He knew that Masayoshi was trying to hide how often he touched his arm, shifting around so that Gotou couldn't see him, holding his wrist loosely. He wanted to strangle Masayoshi, to yell at him for being an idiot, __this was why he tried to leave him behind, dammit__ – but until he knew for certain what Sanae had done to him, he couldn't.

Kiri knew something about witchbreed. He just had to hope he hadn't taken the first train out of town yet – because he needed some __answers.__

He left with a knapsack – to keep his clothes in, once changed, along with the set of clothes Kiri had left with them, Masayoshi already drowsy and halfway to asleep. Gotou sat on the bed with him a while, slowly brushing his fingers through Masayoshi's hair as he drifted off, Masayoshi smiling into his pillow, and felt his heart squeeze.

This was so dangerous. So, so, __so__ dangerous. Masayoshi had been hurt now, not just by him but by _ _his__ enemies, and Gotou didn't know how much more of it he could take. "Sleep well," he said softly, before he got up off the bed to leave.

* * *

He caught Kiri's scent by the park – and found him sitting on the swings. "I was wondering if you'd show up," Kiri said, hands on the chains loosely. "And without your mate."

"If you touch him, I'll kill you," Gotou said, standing at the edge of the play area, out of reach of the swings. Kiri swung a little, dragging his feet in the dirt. "I mean it."

"I know." Kiri swung a little but stopped, letting the natural motion of the swing still. "You can't save him from this, Kage. The taint will kill him."

"You don't know that."

"I know a lot of things." Kiri said. "I've been around a long time, you know. Longer than you think." He sighed. "I don't want us to be enemies. We have enough as it is."

Gotou sat down heavily on the other swing, finally. He looked up at the dark sky. "I don't really want us to be enemies either," he said. "But you killed Sanae … you'll have to leave."

"I plan to." Kiri stared at the sky the as well. "You'll run with me tonight, right? For old time's sake."

Gotou leaned forward on the swing, looked over at Kiri and grinned a too-sharp grin – and after a moment Kiri grinned back.

* * *

Masayoshi squinted in the sunlight, one hand on the strap of Gotou's knapsack, the other holding a can of cold coffee. He stood just slightly behind Gotou, as they saw Kiri off at the train station. "Where are you going?" Gotou had asked him, and he shrugged loosely.

"I just bought a ticket," he said. "We'll see where I end up – I don't have roots, like you do, Kage."

"The pack is gone," Gotou said quietly. "My name is Gotou Hidenori."

Kiri's mouth quirked, and he held out a hand. "Shirogane Koji," he said. Gotou took it and they grinned at each other, and Masayoshi blinked again.

"I'm Masayoshi," he added unnecessarily, and Kiri laughed and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Keep a leash on your mate," he said. "Don't let him be too rough with you, okay?"

"Gotou-san would never hurt me," he said defensively, and Gotou sighed, blushing just a little.

"Oh," Kiri said, fishing in his own knapsack. "Shit, I just remembered..." he grabbed a well-worn notebook, stuffed full of things, little tabs sticking out of it, and held it out to Gotou. "This was Kaze's," he said. "I've only flipped through it a few times, but – it's got a lot of lore, a lot of important stuff – and it has the contact information of some of Kaze's friends – __witchbreed."__

Gotou took the notebook, looked down at it and back up at Kiri – who had already turned away to board the train. "Thanks!" he called, and Kiri waved a hand over his shoulder, and didn't turn around again.


	25. may 14th

"Who're you texting?" Masayoshi said, draping himself over Gotou's shoulders. Gotou had smelled him coming and __still__ jumped, because he was in the middle of a thought and he hadn't expected the physical affection. Masayoshi had been stingy with it lately, and Gotou knew that his arm must be bothering him again.

"No one," he said, quickly swiping the screen.

Masayoshi huffed and didn't move. "It's not," Gotou started to say, and then shoved at Masayoshi's arm. "I don't have to __tell__ you who I'm texting, 'yoshi-"

"Is it Kiri? Are you planning my surprise birthday party?" Gotou successfully shrugged out from under Masayoshi's arms and shoved him, just a bit.

"Your birthday isn't for six __months__ , Masayoshi."

"Four months." Masayoshi sat on the bed, holding his fingers in the air.

"Whatever." Gotou waved his now-dark phone in Masayoshi's direction. "I was just seeing if I could get someone to grab my shift on Friday, swapping for next week." He paused, and scowled at himself. "Dammit."

"Why do you need Friday off?" Masayoshi said.

Gotou waved his hand in the air. "It's no big deal, I just have some errands to run," he said. Masayoshi brightened.

"We haven't been on a date in a while, can I come? That would be fun, it's been so busy at work lately-"

"No," Gotou said, cutting him off.

Masayoshi furrowed his brow. "Why __not__?"

"I'll take you on a date this weekend," Gotou said, and then blushed as Masayoshi perked up again.

" _ _Really?__ Where?"

"There's that new movie out you wanted to see, right?" He scratched his nose, slightly pleased at how happy Masayoshi looked. "I just gotta get some stuff done on Friday first, don't worry about it."

Masayoshi hopped up from his seat. "I'm going to make dinner," he said. "Do you want anything?"

"Nah," Gotou said. "Just bring me a beer, I'm good." He watched Masayoshi bounce into the kitchen and kept the content expression on his face, because he didn't know when Masayoshi was going to pop back in.

He wasn't getting any better. He'd incorporated it well, hiding the strange tiredness, and the occasional tenderness of the arm, and if Gotou hadn't known to __look__ for it he might have snuck it right under the radar. As it was he didn't mention it, he let Masayoshi think that he was getting away with it.

Gotou had woken up one night, a few weeks back – regular night, regular moon, nothing to warn him or prepare him when he saw Masayoshi's arm, wedged underneath his body, glowing green, the faint lines running up past the elbow down, straight and jagged, not contoured like veins.

There was no point to telling Masayoshi – what could he do? He hesitated in touching Gotou with that hand, his primary hand – he'd reach out for him with his left, the right tucked against himself. It didn't hurt Gotou, although the smell of it was unpleasant, that dimmed and faded with a pattern he hadn't quite tamped down.

Masayoshi returned a short while later, with a can of cold beer for Gotou. He sat down on the other side of the table with his food. "So what are you doing tonight?" he asked conversationally. It was warm out again, there was no need for him to ask Gotou to stay here, in his wolf-form, now – and Gotou found he missed the casual insistence.

"Not sure," he said. "Maybe just do a loop or two of my territory and come back."

Come back, and keep a watchful eye as Masayoshi slept, to see if the curse did anything during the full moon.

Masayoshi made a noise of assent, eating quietly. He'd been – not quite __different__ , the last few weeks, he was still clearly Masayoshi, loud and nosy and annoying – but at times he'd become strangely subdued. He hadn't initiated anything, recently, and Gotou had found that he missed it, after how frequently they touched before.

The words were there, on the tip of his tongue – __I'm worried about you –__ but Masayoshi looked up at him and smiled. "I know," he said, and resumed eating.

* * *

There was nothing to __hunt__.

Gotou skulked around the park, frustrated with himself. His energy had been building all week, waiting for its release upon the moon, but – it was still there, making him stalk, aggravated around the park, the tip of his tail twitching. The strange quiescence that seems to have settled over his life was the opposite of calming.

They'd been reading the notebook, together. Masayoshi got upset at him if he tried to read farther ahead – as if he'd learn something and try to keep it from Masayoshi.

Well, if anything, the kid's instincts hadn't dulled over the last month.

He'd taken the contact pages out, when Masayoshi was asleep – changed the passcode on his phone and took pictures, saving the information before hiding the pages. He didn't want Masayoshi to get any more involved in this than he already was, and while Gotou had no experience with witchbreed either, it wasn't something he wanted Masayoshi to try to tackle on his own.

Because he would, in a heartbeat, without a mention to Gotou.

* * *

Masayoshi rolled over when Gotou slipped through the door, the morning sun behind him. He wore a hooded tee shirt and shorts and nothing else, and Masayoshi smiled at him, eyes drifting south to the bulge that was near-impossible to disguise even in the loose shorts.

 _ _He looks delicious__ , Masayoshi thought idly, one hand curled against his chest, the other flung out over the side of the bed. Gotou caught the glimmer of blue through his lashes, hesitating before he pulled the tee shirt off over his head.

"Sleep well?" Gotou asked, and Masayoshi yawned, then slid one hand down under the covers, rubbing his palm over himself.

"I wanna suck you," Masayoshi said, sleepily, pressing his hand down and squeezing himself.

Gotou went beet-red. "You don't have to," he said, as Masayoshi sat up slowly, yawned again and gave Gotou a long look, like a predator measuring his prey. He watched Gotou's shoulders lock, his face registering Masayoshi's desire, and then he walked over to the bed. "I just changed," he said. "I don't know-"

Masayoshi tucked his fingers into the waistband of Gotou's shorts, tugging them down slowly, exposing him. His cock was flushed and red, it jumped past the waistband, swollen with his need. "I haven't been paying you as much attention," he murmured, stroking his fingers over it slowly.

"Any attention is good," Gotou said, unsure what to do with his hands at the moment, as Masayoshi let his shorts fall down his thighs. Masayoshi intentionally leaned in, let the head of Gotou's cock brush over the bridge of his nose, leaving a small, wet trail.

Masayoshi licked him, before letting Gotou's cock slide into his mouth, his fingers loose around the base of his cock. He tasted just as good as Masayoshi had thought, sliding thick and heavy over his tongue. Gotou groaned just a little, and Masayoshi held him loosely in one hand, his other squeezing himself through his underwear.

This was – this was good, this was __wonderful__ , and Masayoshi closed his eyes blissfully as Gotou came down his throat, and couldn't help but feel the empty echo of the thought of how much he would __miss__ it.


	26. may 15th

He dreamt of higanbana, and the moon full over a field of blood-red flowers; a girl he didn't recognize in an unfamiliar school uniform – and Gotou, face crumpled in a very specific kind of heartbreak...

* * *

Masayoshi woke up, and he wasn't in Gotou's bed. He stared at an unfamiliar ceiling, patterned with the dying light of day, and thought, __I'm dead.__ He touched his face with one hand, and as he shifted he realized he wasn't in a bed at all, but on a couch. He sat up slowly, looking around and assessing.

The window was open, it let in daylight and sound – fresh cool air, the distant sound of traffic, of people – there was a desk and bookshelves, some boxes piled around, and as Masayoshi's attention swung about the door opened, and a girl walked through. "Oh," she said, a little surprised, hesitating. "I didn't expect you to be up already."

"Where am I?" Masayoshi asked. "Am I dead?"

She blinked, and then after a moment laughed, closing the door behind her. She didn't look to be much older than Mari, her dark hair pulled back into a high ponytail with a single teal streak dyed in. "No such luck yet, Hazama-san," she said, putting down the box she was carrying on the desk. "How do you feel?"

He touched his head, a little startled – the exhaustion that had lain over him like a physical thing the last few weeks had evaporated like it never was. "Awake," he said.

"Good, it's working then." She stopped before him and grabbed his right wrist with little warning, Masayoshi went to jerk it away but she touched two fingers to it and the green lines appeared, vivid in the daylight. "I can't remove the taint, but I can at least help the symptoms."

"Who-?" Masayoshi asked, and looked around again. "Where's Gotou-san?"

"Your friend had to leave," she said. "He was upsetting the balance of things. It's delicate work, when you're only part witchbreed." She released his wrist and patted his hand. "I'm Akino," she said brightly.

"Akino-san," Masayoshi said, a little overwhelmed.

"I can't say you're going to be fine," she said, returning the box she set down. "But the curse was incomplete, so we might yet find a way to combat it. You pissed off a __nasty__ witch though, that's completely dark magic."

"What did you do?" Masayoshi swung his legs off the couch, sitting up proper – and as he took a deep breath he realized he felt __normal__. The exhaustion was gone, of course, but he hadn't realized how ill he felt until it was all gone.

"I can't go blabbing all my secrets," she said. "I'll go make some tea – you'll probably want to call your boyfriend, he was almost hysterical when he brought you in."

* * *

It turned out that Masayoshi was in the back room of a tea shop - "my family owns it," Akino explained cheerfully, as Masayoshi sat at a small table in the front room. "It's out of the way and is only open odd hours, so we don't get a lot of business, but that's not why we're here anyway."

"You're a witch," Masayoshi said, a little amazed, staring at the tea cup before him.

"Only half, from my mom's side," she said. "It's safe to drink, by the way – it'll help with the taint. I've prepared a bundle of the brew for you as well – but I don't know how long it's going to be effective." She'd put an apron on over her outfit – not a school uniform, Masayoshi realized, and she wasn't the girl he'd seen in his dream either. "It's none of my business, yah, but getting mixed up with wolves is a bad idea."

Masayoshi turned the handle of the tea cup and took a sip, nodding his head. "I've been told that," he said, a little wryly. " _ _Many__ times, by Gotou-san. I don't regret it one bit."

"Good." She sat down opposite him and tapped his wrist with a finger. "Because this changes the world around you. It __will__ kill you, it's only a matter of when – or, if a counter-curse can be found to remove the taint."

Masayoshi lifted his head, stared at her. "Does Gotou-san know that?"

"I haven't told him."

"What was the curse?"

"I'm not quite certain," she said. "If I knew it would be easier to find a counter-curse. Some kind of mind-control, I'm sure, that's always a go-to, but ..." she waved a hand helplessly. "I'm self-taught, you see, my mother didn't know her she was part witchbreed until I inherited the power."

"Self-taught? But you're so young!"

Akino laughed. "Glad you think so." She looked up when the bell over the door tinkled, and rose from her seat. "I need to see to the customers, keep drinking your tea."

"Thank you," Masayoshi said.

"Don't thank me until you see the bill," she said lightly, and walked away.

* * *

Gotou returned his call not long after - "oh, thank god," he'd said when Masayoshi picked up the call. "We're on our way, don't __move__."

It took until Masayoshi set down the phone to realize that Gotou had said, "we."

* * *

Gotou arrived quickly – and he wasn't alone. "Ishihara-san!" Masayoshi yelped, standing so quickly he almost overturned the table.

"Sit down," Akino said. "If you break my dishware that goes on the tab as well."

"Don't scare him," Ishihara told her. "That's my job."

Masayoshi looked between Ishihara and Akino, and seated himself back on the delicate chair, hands on his knees and back straight. He was looking Gotou in the eye, looking for some idea about what was going on, and how much Ishihara __knew__ , because he'd been __good__ and kept Gotou's secret, better than he'd kept his own...

"He's panicking," Gotou said, sounding exhausted himself, and just a little bit amused.

"It's been a busy day," Ishihara said. "Akino-chan, can we get some tea as well?"

"As long as it goes on the tab, Sumi-chan," Akino responded sweetly.

"Uh," Masayoshi said.

"I went to school with Akino-chan," Ishihara said, seating herself opposite of Masayoshi. "She's a good friend."

"But she's a __witch__ -" Masayoshi clamped his hand over his mouth, startled, and looked over at Akino, eyes wide.

"I know," Ishihara said.

"What's going on?" Masayoshi said weakly.

"You passed out," Gotou said. "And wouldn't wake up, and I didn't know what to do, and-" he glanced at Ishihara, who nodded.

"I'd just called to check on you since Gotou-kun had called you in sick," she said. "He told me everything."

" _ _Everything__ everything?" Masayoshi said.

Gotou nodded his head.

"But-"

"I knew that my __good friend who doesn't keep track of tabs__ , Myojin Akino, might be able to help," she said, as Akino placed a new tray on the table.

"This is going on his tab," she said. "Not yours."

Ishihara leaned over the table and grabbed Masayoshi by the cheek. "You," she said, pinching his cheek and eliciting an "owowow", "Should have told me sooner."

Gotou caught her wrist, and she released him. "He was protecting me," Gotou said, and Ishihara sighed.

"I know. So what's the verdict, Akino-chan?"

"I have a lot of research to do to try to find the origin of the taint," she said. " _ _He__ needs to take it easy. Yes, that means your star talent takes a vacation. Or something, I don't care what you do just don't get into fights with other witches or werewolves or whatnot, keep your head down."

"Head down," Masayoshi said. "Got it."

Gotou, who hadn't pulled up a chair, leaned over Masayoshi and put his arm over his shoulder. "And __you a__ re not allowed to scare me again," he said, and Masayoshi flushed pink at the touch in front of others.

"Gotou-san," he said.

"It's almost six," Akino said mildly. "Won't the moon be up soon, ookami-kun?"

"My name is __Gotou__ ," Gotou huffed at her.

"His wolf-name is Kage," Masayoshi supplied, and Gotou smacked his head. "Ow! Gotou-san!"

Ishihara smiled, and Akino walked over to the store's front window, flipping the sign over to 'closed.'


	27. may 16th

I can't believe you knew about all this," Masayoshi said as he stood with Ishihara, waiting for the cab to take her home. "How long have you known?"

"Depends on what you mean by 'all this'," Ishihara said pointedly. She looked back toward the shop, where somewhere in the shadows Gotou skulked, large and menacing, gold eyes flashing with the occasional headlight. "I didn't know werewolves were an actual thing."

Masayoshi put his hands in his pockets. "I can't thank you enough, Ishihara-san," he said.

"I can't let my star get so ill he won't wake up," she said, elbowing him. "Besides, elections are soon, remember?"

"I'm not gonna do it," Masayoshi insisted, and she smiled at him.

"Never say never," she reminded him, as the cab pulled up to the curb.

* * *

"The tea I gave him," Akino said, her back turned as Gotou changed out of his clothes in the back room, before the moon rose. "It'll help, but..."

"How bad is it?" Gotou asked, folding his shirt over.

"Bad," she said, softly. "You're going to have to make a decision soon, I think."

He looked back over his shoulder at her, her back still to him, dark ponytail dangling down, lightened incongruously by the teal streak. "There's no cure, is there?"

"I don't know." She sighed, and hung her head. "But if there's not, what are you going to do?"

* * *

Masayoshi's scent had changed again. Gotou kept pace with him, walking beside him when he could, ducking into alleys and parks when needed. At first Masayoshi had reminded him if he wanted to walk beside him then maybe they should "invest" in a leash, and Gotou snarled so violently it made Masayoshi laugh until he had the hiccups.

He seemed in better spirits now – and Gotou felt the remains of that mind-shattering panic that had consumed him earlier in the day - when Masayoshi wouldn't wake up, breathing shallowly and green lines up to his shoulder – slowly congeal back into that solid lump that had settled in his stomach for a month. His scent though – he'd lost the tinge that made him smell so __good__ , that trace of his own scent; it'd been replaced first by the acrid scent of the taint, and now overridden by the magic in the salve Akino had created.

Masayoshi fell asleep that night sitting up, back to the wall, and Gotou laid over his lap, content under his hand, the dvd spinning back to its menu and playing softly in the background.

* * *

"Don't come in today," Ishihara said, and Masayoshi stood in the genkan, phone to his ear and a puzzled expression on his face. He'd been preparing to leave when his cell phone went off – and it was Ishihara.

"Ishihara-san?" he said, uncertainly. "Are you feeling all right? Don't I have shoots rescheduled?"

"Take it easy," Ishihara said. "Akino-chan said that the medicine would take a few days and if you stress yourself out you could relapse, and I'd rather rescheduled two low-impact days than a full week's worth."

"How do I know this is really Ishihara-san?" Masayoshi said suspiciously, and she let out a loud, aggravated sigh.

When Gotou came out of the shower, naked and using the last clean towel to dry his hair, he stopped in surprise at Masayoshi still here, sitting cross-legged on the bed and squinting suspiciously at his phone.

"Ishihara told me to take the day off," Masayoshi said before he could ask, and he looked up and squinted at Gotou. "You rarely work on the full moon days, how do you get away with that? I never asked."

"Long-standing agreement," Gotou said, tugging the towel down to his neck. "Loads of shift swaps, if you haven't noticed."

"Yeah," Masayoshi said. Gotou __did__ seem to work more on the off-cycle weeks to make up for the slack. "I should go visit Sawada-kun today, it's been a few weeks," he said. "Since I've got a freebie day. Want to go with me?"

"Absolutely not."

Masayoshi puffed his cheeks out. "You don't have to answer so immediately, Gotou-san."

Gotou stood in front of the open closet, getting slowly dressed. "Besides the fact that I'm not interested in seeing that little shit's face right now, I do have errands to run, remember?"

"Oh yeah." It seemed weirdly like a lifetime ago already, even if it was barely a day. "We're still doing the movie tomorrow, right?" He looked up hopefully at Gotou, who sighed and smiled.

"That's one of my errands, picking up tickets," he said. "I don't want you going to see Sawada today though, got it?"

"Why __not__?"

"You don't need to be stressed out by the little fucker."

Masayoshi crossed his arms. "I'm not made of glass," he said. "You and Ishihara both, you're conspiring to keep me indoors."

"You caught us," Gotou said dryly. "Oh no, we want to keep you safe."

" _ _You're__ the one who gets stressed out by Sawada-kun."

Gotou paused in buttoning his shirt, and Masayoshi hesitated, but didn't backtrack. "I don't want you going."

" _ _Fine__ ," Masayoshi said. "You better be back before moonrise." He flopped back on the bed dramatically. "I should text Blue, tell him I'm on house arrest and have him bring me lunch or something."

Gotou rolled his eyes and walked to the bed. "Idiot," he said, and nudged Masayoshi's knee with his own. "I'll bring you lunch back."

"You will?" Masayoshi had flopped an arm over his eyes as part of his pose, he lifted it and looked up at Gotou. "Curry?"

"I don't even know why I ask," he said, and sighed.

* * *

"Kiri's a different kind of werewolf than you are," Masayoshi said idly when Gotou returned, two plastic bags of groceries and a cigarette in his mouth. He glanced up at Gotou and frowned. "No smoking inside, Gotou-san!"

"I ran out of hands," Gotou complained, dropping the bags on the floor and stepping back out the door. Masayoshi got up and retrieved the food – both some groceries and a very late lunch. "I thought you weren't going to be long," he yelled through the door, before walking it over to the small kitchen area.

"Oi," Gotou said as he came back in, a whiff of tobacco smoke following him, but the butt disposed of. "Don't yell shit through the front door, the neighbors can hear that."

"I never hear the neighbors," Masayoshi said.

"That's because they don't yell shit through the door," he retorted. "Sorry I took so long."

"What did Akino-chan have to say?" Masayoshi asked innocently, and Gotou scowled at him.

"I didn't see Akino," he said. "Also, no __shit__ Kiri is, did you see what he turned into on the moon?"

"I was reading about it in the notebook," Masayoshi said. "I didn't realize there were entirely different __branches__ , werewolf taxonomy is so interesting!" He paused thoughtfully as he put Gotou's new beers in the fridge. "I wonder if a werewolf would always be a wolf on the moon, that's an interesting though."

"Please stop talking," Gotou said, thrusting the carton of food into his hands. "Eat, you'll feel better."

"I feel fine!"

"No, you don't." Gotou leaned in close, and Masayoshi scoffed.

"You don't get to tell me how I feel, Gotou-san."

"You smell off," he said. " _ _Eat.__ "

"You know, I've been on the moon," Masayoshi said, as Gotou shoved him back toward the main room. "It's just a rock, I don't get how it triggers all that-"

" _ _Eat!"__

* * *

They hadn't turned any lights on – there was the one in the kitchen, and the light from the television, but the room grew dusky as the sun set. "Moon's late tonight," Gotou said, Masayoshi sitting comfortably between his legs as they watched television. It was warm in the room, but after he was done eating Masayoshi had scooting over and essentially climbed into Gotou's lap on the bed, and … he wasn't complaining.

"Mm," Masayoshi tilted his head back to Gotou's shoulder and looked up at him. "What do you suggest?" he said.

Gotou slipped his his hands meaningfully into the waist of Masayoshi's shorts. Masayoshi laughed a little, catching the back of Gotou's neck with his hand and tugging him down so that they could kiss. "I thought you didn't want me stressing out," he murmured.

"I didn't want you stressing out during the day," Gotou responded, as he slid Masayoshi's shorts off completely. "So we could do this."

"The moon's coming soon," Masayoshi reminded him, as Gotou stroked him slowly, still kissing him gently.

"I know," Gotou said huskily.

Masayoshi drew back a little, staring at him, wide-eyed. " _ _Oh__ ," he said, breathlessly.

"Yeah," Gotou said, maintaining eye contact. "If … you want to?"

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi said, yanking him down into another kiss.

* * *

This time they knew it was going to happen, so Gotou took his time stretching Masayoshi, slowly and surely, spreading the lube as much as he could. Masayoshi arched his back to the bed, legs over Gotou's shoulder's as he lay between Masayoshi's legs, focused intently on making sure that Masayoshi would be prepared for it.

His legs were shaking, slightly, on Gotou's shoulders, twitching every time he pushed his fingers in, pressing against that spot he had found the first time they did this, that made Masayoshi gasp his name and tighten on his fingers, hands clawing at the sheets and mattress. He'd worked in three, moving slowly, the slick of the lube making filthy noises as kept working and Masayoshi smacked the mattress barehanded, moaning Gotou's name into his arm.

"Want you," Masayoshi said, twisting underneath him. "Want you, __please__ , Gotou-san-"

"Want my what?" Gotou murmured, reaching up to stroke Masayoshi's cock lightly, pressing it back against his body with his palm.

Masayoshi's face was beet red, one arm over his eyes, the other practically clawing the sheet off the mattress. "Want your cock," Masayoshi said, without an ounce of shame. "Want your __knot__ , Gotou-san, __please__ -"

The way he gasped it, chest heaving, made Gotou's entire body tremble. He pulled his fingers out slowly and climbed up Masayoshi's body, spreading Masayoshi's legs wide with his hips, gripping his waist firmly and lifting him off the pillows.

He wanted a recording made of the lewd noise of satisfaction Masayoshi made as he sunk in to that warm, tight heat. He leaned forward and pulled Masayoshi's arm off his eyes so he could see his face, and Masayoshi flinched a little at the touch, tightening on him as he did so.

"Masayoshi," Gotou said, cupping his face with one hand and feeling that strange pressure building, knowing what it was now, what was going to happen. "Look at me."

A glimmer of watery blue between long lashes, and Gotou pressed down and in, leaning over him, pushing Masayoshi double. Masayoshi's eyes snapped shut again and he moaned, coming on his own belly, cock still flushed and hard. "Look at me," Gotou commanded again, face close to Masayoshi's, thumb wiping away the tears that were spilling down his cheek.

"L-love you, Gotou-san," Masayoshi choked out, throwing his arms over Gotou's shoulders, keeping him down.

"Do you feel that?" Gotou asked him, the pressure building, Masayoshi growing tighter around him. Masayoshi tilted his head back and moaned, legs snug over Gotou's hips as they both felt Gotou's cock swell inside him.

He couldn't speak, his breath caught in his throat, syllables only escaping as moans. Gotou rocked against him, not moving much, cock rooted deep inside Masayoshi. "Masayoshi," he said again, heavily, eyes glimmering gold, and Masayoshi opened his own eyes, met Gotou's.

"Do you understand?" Gotou breathed, hips moving slowly, not wanting to accidentally pull out, to tear him. "What this means?"

Masayoshi gasped as he pressed against that __spot__ , entire body locking up, and clawed Gotou's shoulders bloody as he came again.

* * *

Masayoshi lay on his stomach on the edge of the mattress, arm dangling over so he could brush his fingers over Gotou's back as he lay on the floor, overheated.

"I want a June wedding," he murmured, and Gotou flicked his ears.


	28. june 12th

The dream came randomly - he'd had it before, Masayoshi knew. Always the higanbana, always the strange girl with the sad smile. He would wake chilled, often strangely weak - he'd get up out of bed, extracting himself from Gotou's strong arms and make himself some of Akino's special tea, sipping on that until he felt better. There was no point to mentioning the dreams, or dwelling on them, they would just worry Gotou, and Gotou worried enough as it was.

After all, they were in the middle of planning a wedding.

Masayoshi stood in the kitchen area, the sun already peeking through the blinds, still to early to be properly awake. He held the hot tea in his hands and watched Gotou still sleeping in the bed and smiled helplessly. Gotou's hair was a mess, and the sheets had slipped all the way down, barely covering Gotou's hip.

He was naked under the covers. Masayoshi blushed a little bit despite himself, leaning against the doorframe that cut the apartment, separating the kitchen area from the rest of it. Gotou was gorgeous in the early morning light, an he was sorely tempted to crawl back into bed with him and kiss him slowly awake, making coax some morning sex out of him.

But, Gotou had to go to work soon - he usually always worked the first day of the cycle, as long as he could get off work well before the moon rose - and really, Masayoshi did too, although his work would consist more of sitting with Ishihara-san and going over wedding plans with the occasional text to Gotou to update him on the status and ask for opinions.

(They were getting __married__ in like two weeks, oh my god.)

Well, they already were, technically. Masayoshi smiled to himself at the thought, of how tenderly Gotou had stroked his face, moving above him, every action slow and deliberate - and managed to make himself hard. He sighed and drained the cup.

Gotou stirred a little when he crawled into bed, turning his face up into Masayoshi's touch and making a slightly confused noise that slid into contented when Masayoshi kissed him. "Good morning," Masayoshi murmured, as Gotou rubbed one eye, squinting at him.

"Morning," Gotou rumbled. "My alarm hasn't gone off, has it?" he peered sleepily up at the wall clock, but Masayoshi caught his chin and kissed him again. "Mm, you're pushy this today."

"Think we've got time for a quickie?" Masayoshi asked, pressing his hips down over Gotou's still sheet-covered thigh.

"You've had your tea," Gotou said, reaching up and brushing his hand through Masayoshi's hair. "She should have warned us that it would make you horny __all the time.__ "

"I'm not complaining," Masayoshi said, nipping at the juncture of neck and shoulder playfully. "Are you?"

"Not at all." Gotou rolled onto his back proper. "Just use lube this time, okay? I can only handle without right after I've changed."

Masayoshi kissed him again.

* * *

Gotou stood under the shower spray and rubbed his neck, where Masayoshi had bit him, a little too into things. It would bruise up and be gone before moonrise, but that didn't mean it didn't sting __now__ , under the punishing spray of hot water. That had been an exceedingly pleasant way to wake up, and he wasn't knocking it, but now he was just a little bit sore and that was going to make doing bike patrols just that much more interesting.

By the time he emerged from the cocoon of steam that the bathroom quickly became, Masayoshi was sitting at the table in front of Gotou's laptop, wearing just his underwear, another mug of tea at his elbow. "You do realize I'm going to work," he said, kissing the top of Masayoshi's head and trying to ignore the worry that blossomed at the realization that Masayoshi had been drinking more and more of the concoction.

"Yeah," Masayoshi leaned back just a little bit, into Gotou's embrace, before he stepped away to get dressed. "Mizuki-chan texted me, she wants to take me shopping today." Masayoshi looked over at Gotou, a perplexed expression on his face. "Any idea why?"

"There is no telling, with them," Gotou said truthfully. He didn't hesitate in buttoning up his shirt. "Moon rises earliest tonight, so I might already be changed by the time you get home."

"You're still going to work?" Masayoshi said, and blinked.

"Cutting out early," Gotou said. "Nick owes me like, seventeen favors right now, so he's taking the last couple hours of my shift."

"Ah." Masayoshi sat forward. "Here I was hoping we could ... you know," he said, and blushed.

Gotou blushed in response as he straightened his tie. "You really like that, huh?" he said, and Masayoshi turned a darker shade of pink. "I can't believe you're already thinking about that not twenty minutes after you screwed my brains out."

"It's a limited time thing!" Masayoshi said, still bright pink. "I __gotta__ plan around it, if I want you to knot me."

They both looked at each other, matching shades of red - and then Gotou covered his face with one hand and sighed, and Masayoshi laughed despite himself. "Maybe tomorrow, all right?" Gotou said, and Masayoshi beamed at him, getting up from his seated position smoothly.

"I'll see you tonight, Gotou-san," he said, and kissed him, before putting Gotou's hat on his head.

* * *

Masayoshi sat down heavily on the bed after he saw Gotou safely out the door, and wondered if Gotou could tell. He hadn't mentioned scents yet, although they would be getting stronger now since it was the first night of the moon - he was going to have to try his best. Masayoshi looked down at his trembling hands, and thought, desperately, __two more weeks.__

* * *

The text came about lunch time – Gotou had been filling out paperwork for an old woman who had a complaint about feral cats who were getting into her garden and eating the birds. Once he'd finished with her and had a chance to pull out his phone, he saw that the message was from Akino.

 _ _We need to talk, before Masayoshi goes through with this.__

Gotou stared at his phone, trying to make sense of the message, before keying his response. __Talk about what?__

 _ _About the cure.__


	29. june 13th

They sat side by side amidst the flowers, a cool autumn breeze and a full moon in the sky. She spoke, but he couldn't hear her, he watched as she gestured instead, eyes always shadowed, but couldn't follow the motions. He felt weirdly detached, ethereal, and stared up at the sky, at the ever-bright moon...

* * *

Masayoshi woke when he was hauled out of bed by the front of his shirt, Gotou's eyes still wolf-gold, the early morning sun sneaking around the drawn blinds. He flailed, confused and disoriented, as Gotou brought his face close, too keyed up to even yell. "Are you a fucking __idiot?__ "

"Ah?" Masayoshi managed, bewildered, the tail end of his dream wrapped around him like a snake.

"Did you think she'd not tell me? Fucking __hell__ , Masayoshi!"

Masayoshi blinked at him. "You can understand her?"

Gotou's anger paused in his confusion. "What?"

"The girl in my dream, she doesn't talk," Masayoshi said, and Gotou released his shirt, let him flop back on the mattress.

"Moron, I'm talking about Akino!"

Instant awareness. Masayoshi looked away immediately, to the wall – Gotou wasn't even dressed yet, anger had overridden everything else. "She promised she wouldn't tell you," he said, indignant. "And I hadn't decided on it __yet__ , it takes a while for the whole thing to cook is what she said."

Gotou sat down heavily on the edge of the mattress, his back to Masayoshi. "Masayoshi," he said, sounding exhausted all of the sudden. Masayoshi looked over at him, and then down to his hands, resting in his lap. "Is this why you pushed the wedding as soon as you could?"

"Yeah," Masayoshi said softly.

"Dammit." Gotou leaned forward and shoved his hands through his hair. " _ _Dammit__. I don't want you to go through with it."

Masayoshi watched the faint wisp of green trace up his arm and fade out. "What choice do I have?"

* * *

Akino was sweeping in front of her store when Gotou arrived. He'd cut out an hour earlier than he'd already planned – muttering something about it being an emergency to Totsuka, who sighed bemused, assuming it had something to do with the wedding. She did not stop her chore or look up, instead commenting, amused - "It never ceases to amaze me that you are police."

"What is __that__ supposed to mean?" Gotou said, uncomfortable still in his work uniform, moonrise less than two hours off.

"That most werewolves never bother with careers or even trying to help people," she said, and stopped, looking up at him. "You're different, though. It's good."

"You found a cure?" He wasn't going to beat around the bush.

She sighed, holding the broom, and then gesture with her head. "We'll talk inside, ookami-san."

He'd only been to the small shop a handful of times. Gotou stood awkwardly as Akino flipped the closed sign, and then nodded to the tables. "Sit," she instructed. "I'll make tea."

Gotou didn't sit. "How long have you had a cure?" he asked, keeping his professional tone, biting back the simmering anger.

"It's not a first choice," she said, bustling behind a counter. "It's not even good choice. I never would have mentioned it if there were other options."

"What is it?"

"It's an old magic," she said. "Dark. Not the sort of stuff I usually touch – but according to the readings, it is the best way to eliminate curses cast by the dead." She placed a tea cup on its saucer and set it on the counter, since Gotou clearly was not interested in seating himself.

He looked down at the drink, and then back to her, and she sighed. "The problem is, I don't think it will work as intended, but it's meant to lift _ _completed__ curses. There's next to no literature on incomplete curses, and what little there is doesn't seem applicable to the situation."

"What will it do to him?" Gotou asked, a cold feeling settled in his stomach.

"He'll lose memories." Akino said. "There's no telling how many or how far back. It's a rarely used spell – the documented instances showed one person losing a week's worth, another regressed to childhood."

"And there's no guarantee," he said softly, staring at the untouched tea cup.

"No." When he looked up at her, her expression was sympathetic. "I'm sorry. It's the best option at this point."

Gotou slammed his fist down onto the counter, hard enough to startle the tea cup, jumping on its saucer with a clatter. "God __damn__ it!"

* * *

Dressed, and showered and Masayoshi sat on the edge of the bed, now made neatly up. He had his hands clasped between his knees, and he looked up when Gotou sat down at the table again. "I thought," he said, and then stopped.

"You wanted us married first," Gotou said. "So if you forgot about me, and everything, I couldn't back off and pretend we aren't this."

Masayoshi bit his lip but maintained eye contact. "You would."

"You're in this mess because of __me__ ," Gotou said. "Because of the world I live in. It would be better if we'd never gotten so close, you'd be __safe,__ and I'd be-" He stopped and looked away.

"You'd be dead instead," Masayoshi said hotly, and Gotou snapped his head up and glared.

"It doesn't matter where I'd be, because __you__ would be safe," he said. "You're going to be the President of the World, for fuck's sake, Masayoshi."

"I don't __care__ , I don't want that," Masayoshi was on his feet now, staring down at Gotou. "I just want to be with you, Gotou-san, I don't care about anything else!" His voice wavered and it struck Gotou like a physical thing. "And I didn't want to tell you until right before, because I __knew__ you would react like this, and I don't want you to try to pretend things away for my own safety! That's not fair to either of us!"

Gotou got to his feet slowly, hands curled into fists. "I'm not going to let you get __hurt__ ," he snarled. "And you __will__ get hurt with me, again, and I can't _ _deal__ with that!"

Masayoshi flung himself at Gotou and Gotou tensed himself for a blow, but it was Masayoshi wrapping his arms over his shoulders and pressing his face against the side of Gotou's. "Please," he said, voice muffled. "Please, I can't bear the thought of you alone again, Gotou-san."

"Idiot," Gotou said savagely, one hand on the back of Masayoshi's head, the other on his back. "I wouldn't be alone, I'd still be your friend, wouldn't I?"

"I love you so __much__ ," Masayoshi choked out. "I don't want to forget that, it's horrible, I __don't__ -"

"Shh," Gotou said, as Masayoshi shook in his arms. "Shh, we'll – I don't know, we'll figure something out, okay?"

"What if we don't?" Masayoshi asked, voice small.

"We __will__ ," Gotou said with certainty.

* * *

Gotou called Akino in the evening, standing outside the apartment door, cigarette in hand. Masayoshi was making dinner, and he could hear Masayoshi humming the Red Axe theme through the door.

"Find something else," he said, when she picked up the line. "Anything else."

"There __is__ nothing else," Akino said, voice perturbed. "I've looked."

"There has to be __something.__ "

There was a long pause, and that hesitation gave Gotou the faintest glimmer of hope. "Well," she said. "You're not gonna like it."

Gotou said, calmly, "Try me."


	30. june 14th

"I'm almost out of tea again," Masayoshi said, peering into his container. "I guess I'm gonna have to go by Akino-chan's shop."

Gotou lifted his head off his paws and stared at Masayoshi as Masayoshi put the container down and rubbed the back of his head. He rose off the bed and hopped down, stalking across the room and brushing right by Masayoshi, before standing between him and the door, head held high and gold eyes narrowed.

Masayoshi crossed his arms. "I'm not going to do anything stupid," he said, and Gotou's ears cocked back and he growled. "I __need__ the tea, Gotou-san."

When Gotou didn't budge, Masayoshi picked up his mug and headed back to the main room. "I wasn't gonna go tonight anyway, you know. You don't have to panic like that."

Gotou huffed and followed Masayoshi back into the main room, then sat on his haunches beside Masayoshi and watched him alertly. Masayoshi sighed, and flashed a wan smile at Gotou. "You don't have to stay in, you know," he said, and Gotou made that huffing noise again. "I'm gonna put on Celestial Neon Sigma then," he said, and this caused a long, drawn-out sigh from Gotou, who went from sitting upright to lying now, head across his paws again.

He felt weird now that Gotou knew. It wasn't so much like a weight had been lifted – it was just __shifted.__ It was a different weight now, and it was terrifying and cold, solidified in his chest and making it hard to breathe. He'd been scared before, but he'd been able to put those fears aside and do what needed to be done, even at the possible cost of his own life. Why was __this__ any different?

Akino had told him about the spell weeks ago, when he last refilled his container of tea. She still wasn't certain the origin of the spell that Sanae had cast - especially considering how intense the repercussions were for something done in such haste – and the closest she had come up with was some hybrid spell for vampirism and mind control.

" _ _She wanted to turn me into a vampire?"__

" _ _Not quite, but that would have definitely been one of the side effects if it was cast correctly."__

But it wasn't cast correctly, and he was __not__ going to leave Gotou alone. He'd made a promise that he would look after and take care of Gotou and this was __not__ going to kill him. So he'd lose some memories, so what? He'd make new ones! Even if he forgot all about Gotou, if he forgot all about the past year and a half, he knew he'd find himself in love all over again. There wasn't an ounce of doubt about that.

Gotou raised his head and looked at him, as Masayoshi rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand. He would live, and they would be happy. He would make __certain.__

* * *

"I am so glad we're keeping this small," Gotou said, sitting on the edge of the mattress and watching as Masayoshi sorted through messages. "And keeping the press out of it, fucking hell that would be a headache."

"Konno-san is invited," Masayoshi said idly, writing something down in his notebook.

"He's not going to be filming the thing, is he? Maybe we should make him check his cell phone at the door."

"I haven't heard back if Sawada-kun is going to make it," Masayoshi said idly. "I'd sent a formal request for the facility to give him a day pass, too."

"What?" Gotou said. "No. No __way."__

"Be nice, Gotou-san."

"I don't want that shithead at my wedding!"

Masayoshi lifted his head. "That's the opposite of nice."

"I don't care! When did you invite __him? Why__ did you invite him?"

"Well, he's sort of the catalyst to everything, isn't he?" Masayoshi returned his attention to what he was doing. "Besides, it wouldn't feel right __not__ inviting him."

"Masayoshi, superheroes don't invite their villains to their weddings."

"Well, I already did, and I haven't gotten a response. I'll need to call the detention center."

"Don't. In fact, I'm going to call them and make sure they __don't__ give him a day pass." Gotou stood up, indignant.

"Have you heard from Kiri-san?" Masayoshi asked innocently, diverting Gotou's attention in an instant. "Is he coming?"

"Supposedly." Gotou put his hands on his hips. "He's even got a plus one, and __that__ scares me."

Masayoshi looked up at Gotou. "Do you think it's another werewolf?" he asked excitedly, and Gotou sighed.

"Considering __all you've been through__ , I can't believe you're asking me that."

Masayoshi made a face at him. " _ _Clearly__ not all werewolves are bad, and isn't it kinda, I dunno, stereotyping to think like that? Besides, meeting other wolves is cool."

Gotou shook his head and sighed, but couldn't help the smile that tugged at his face. "I was thinking I'd run by Akino's shop to get your tea," he said. "Since you're busy finalizing the guest list for Ishihara."

"I'll go with you, I'm almost done!"

Gotou leaned over and kissed the top of Masayoshi's head. "I can tell you're tired," he said gently. "On top of drinking the last of your tea last night you stayed up __way__ too late watching toku, 'yoshi."

Masayoshi leaned his head back and made another face, puffing out his cheeks and then saying begrudgingly, _"_ _ _Fiiiine.__ "

* * *

Akino's store actually had other people in it, which was a surprise to Gotou as every other time he'd been by he'd been the only person there. "He's gone through that batch __already?__ " Akino said, as Gotou gave her the empty tin. "Sheesh, is he even eating food?"

"He's eating like a horse," Gotou said, a little puzzled by the comment. Akino disappeared into the back room and returned shortly after with a fresh canister. "What's even in it?"

"Doesn't matter," Akino said. She put her hand over the lid and looked Gotou in the eye. "You sure you want to do this?"

"I know, I know, there's no guarantee," Gotou said.

"That's not what I was going to say, but there's never any guarantees in witchbreed magic either," she said, drumming her fingers on the lid.

"I love him," Gotou said quietly, flushing slightly. "I'm not going to lose him."

Akino closed her eyes and smiled, then held out the canister. "This'll keep him stable," she said. "It's a bit stronger than the last batch, so – you might wanna be prepared for that."

"Oh boy," Gotou said. "I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Masayoshi woke, startled, when Gotou set a cup of tea by his hand. He'd dozed off sitting up at the table, his chin propped up in one hand. "Gotou-san," he said, not really awake.

Gotou tugged the notebook out from under his other arm. "I'll get this to Ishihara," he said. "Drink your tea, maybe you should go to bed early tonight?"

"I'll be fine," Masayoshi said, covering his yawn with his hand. "Tonight's our last chance to..."

"There'll be other chances," he said. "You should rest."

"I'm just tired, I'm not made of glass, Gotou-san." Masayoshi said, prepared to slide into full-on pout mode. "There's not another full moon before the wedding, __please?__ "

Gotou sat down at the table, lowering himself with a bit of a huff. "We'll see," he said, and nodded to the flowers, sitting in a small glass of water in the center of the table. "Where'd those come from?"

Masayoshi stared at the tulips, had the faintest, wispy memory of being handed the red and violet blossoms … but that had been a dream, right? "I have no idea."


	31. july 11th

"Ah, I think I like this better," Gotou said as he looped the chain through the silver band. "I don't want to know what would happen if I forgot to take it off when the moon comes."

Masayoshi had his chin in both hands, elbows on the table. "I like it when you wear the ring, though," he said, just a little petulantly. It still made him blush, just a little to see Gotou wearing it, to know the weight of it – but he wasn't changing this function because of shame, or anything like that.

"I know." Gotou smiled at him. "Sorry, 'yoshi."

Masayoshi held out his hand for the ring, the silver chain complementing it nicely. "A werewolf wearing a silver ring on a chain," he said, amused. Gotou ducked his head forward when Masayoshi sat up on his knees, which allowed Masayoshi to slip the chain over his head.

Gotou tucked the chain inside his shirt, the ring disappearing from view. Masayoshi sighed a little, and Gotou patted the front of his shirt. "You're always right above my heart," he said, and this time Masayoshi did blush, full-on red. He laughed in response as Masayoshi ducked away, refusing to look at him or see the blush painted on his own face.

They were … this, now. Masayoshi looked down at his hands, at the ring he himself wore and blushed more. Had he ever really thought they'd get to this point, that Gotou would open up and tease him, and laugh like that, and actually be __open__ with his feelings... Masayoshi covered the bottom of his face, eyes fixed on the wall somewhere past the television set.

 _ _He'd barely gotten to enjoy it – but how would he ever know what he was missing?__

Gotou could almost sense when he had these thoughts – he leaned around the table, one hand on Masayoshi's shoulder. "Hey," he said. "Stop that."

"Akino-chan said the spell would be ready any day now," Masayoshi said.

"I know." Gotou moved around the edge of the table now, sat himself around Masayoshi, so Masayoshi could lean back into him. "That's why we postponed the honeymoon, remember?" Masayoshi flinched a little at the phrasing, and Gotou felt it, and sighed.

They were going to have to make a decision soon, Masayoshi knew. He could feel it, the tea wasn't working the same way it had for the last few weeks. Gotou kept an eye on him – way too often, he had to be skipping a __lot__ of work and Masayoshi fretted, but Gotou would kiss his forehead and say it was all right, he had it covered...

"Did you get a chance to look at the apartment listings?" Gotou asked him instead, and Masayoshi groaned.

"I can't think about moving at a time like __this__ , Gotou-san."

"Hi-de-no-ri."

Masayoshi laid his head back on Gotou's shoulder, feeling Gotou's breath along his neck. "Go-to-u-sa-n," he said in the same enunciated tone.

Gotou sighed, amused. "I'm going to have to train you out of it," he said determinedly.

Masayoshi scoffed, and Gotou wound his fingers through Masayoshi's, lifting his left hand up. "I never thought," Gotou said softly, and Masayoshi smiled when he brought Masayoshi's hand up and across so he could kiss the knuckles. "I'd be capable of this, Masayoshi."

"There's no reason why you wouldn't be," Masayoshi said, as Gotou squeezed his hand. "And don't you dare say you're a monster, because you are __not__."

Gotou made a noise that he couldn't quite quantify, and then released Masayoshi's hand, putting that hand on the other side of his head and tilting it in to kiss him there. Masayoshi beamed a little at this, especially as Gotou muttered gruffly, "Fucking idiot."

* * *

Masayoshi cleaned up the table as Gotou made him dinner. "I told you I'm not hungry," Masayoshi had protested, and Gotou pointed to the bed. "Sit. You need to __eat,__ Masayoshi, don't pretend like I haven't noticed."

He sat meekly on the edge of the mattress, but once Gotou had left the room got back up to at least do something a __little__ productive. He didn't know if it was the taint, or the magicked tea, but in the last few days he'd stopped feeling hungry whatsoever. He'd usually force himself to eat a little bit of something for Gotou's sake, but it was like pretty much all food smelled __bad__. Even his precious curry sounded unappetizing.

"Ah," Masayoshi said as he overturned the envelope the silver chain had arrived in. "They sent a second chain, Gotou-san!"

Gotou stuck his head through the door. "Did they? Guess it's good to have a spare."

Masayoshi held it in his hands for a moment, then nodded his head. "I'll wear mine on a chain too!" he said determinedly, opening the clasp.

Gotou blinked at him, then ducked back into the kitchen a second before emerging, wiping his hands on his shorts. "You don't have to do that, 'yoshi, I know how much the ring means to you."

"Yeah, but – like you said, Gotou-san, you'll be over my heart!" he patted himself on the chest. "Also, I have a feeling Ishihara-san would make me take it off if I did any more modeling shoots, so I wouldn't want to lose it."

His hands shook just a little – it was hard to keep them steady, with how weak he'd been lately, and Gotou was watching him which always made it worse – and Gotou caught his hands and took the chain. "Here,", Gotou murmured, slipping the ring off of Masayoshi's finger and threading the chain through out. Masayoshi smiled at him as he looped it over Masayoshi's head, the silver ring settling outside his clothes. "Better?"

"Thank you, Gotou-san!"

"I'm going to make sure you eat __all__ your dinner," Gotou said. "Especially if you're shaking like that."

"I'm __fine,"__ Masayoshi said indignantly.

"You're going to eat everything I feed you tonight, __and__ all day tomorrow," Gotou said. "Especially if you want me to do __that__ tomorrow night."

Masayoshi turned pink. "I thought we were gonna tonight!"

"Nope." Masayoshi walked to the door that separated the main room from the kitchen area. "Mostly because I've got something I have to do tonight before moonrise." Gotou checked on the pot bubbling cheerfully on the burner as he spoke, and Masayoshi crossed his arms, pouting.

" _ _Stingy,__ " Masayoshi muttered.

Gotou looked over at him and smiled – and it was a weirdly sad smile, soft and tender. "I promise I'm gonna make tomorrow night special, okay? You just gotta eat for me."

Masayoshi bit his lower lip and nodded. The strange, ice-cold pinpricks of sensation that had started the last few days were slowly winding up his arm, and he did his best to restrain the urge to rub it. "Fine," he said. "I've never had a mom before, but you make a good one, Gotou-san."

"O-oi!" Gotou said, clearly unsure how to take that. He glared at Masayoshi, who grinned at him and fled from the doorway, headed back toward the sanctuary of the bed. "Idiot," Gotou muttered, but smiled.


	32. july 12th

Gotou lay against Masayoshi's side, with his arm over Masayoshi's chest, hand resting lightly over his heart. The chain with his ring on it had slid off to the side, and Masayoshi was snoring a little through his nose – but his heartbeat was steady and strong.

They were drowsing through the day, in part so that Masayoshi would have plenty of energy for the evening, even though he got stubborn and sulky when it was phrased that way. He didn't like how weak he was getting, how obvious it was that the taint was getting worse. The lines were past his shoulder now, when they flared up – they were clearly heading for his heart.

He'd had a dream, on the midday, that Masayoshi went through with the spell, that he'd lost it all – not just his memories of Gotou, but the fact that he was a hero, that he'd saved the world – and that it didn't __work,__ the taint was still killing him. Gotou had woken up panicked, startled himself and Masayoshi awake, and Masayoshi had put his hand on Gotou's arm, asked him with a soft smile what was wrong and – it wasn't __fair,__ when he responded like that.

There was never any certain way to deal with witchbreed taint, he knew that now – but everyone he'd talked to about this now seemed to think that this was the best option, that it was the only option. Gotou rose up on his elbow and brushed his hand through Masayoshi's bangs, watching him stir, to waken slowly.

"Hey," Gotou murmured, as Masayoshi blinked his eyes sleepily. "It's almost evening. What do you want for dinner?"

Masayoshi reached over and caught his fingers on Gotou's chain, tugging on it slightly. "You," he said, grinning drowsily. "By the time you make curry the moon'll be up," Masayoshi said, and yawned. "You shouldn't've let me sleep so long, Gotou-san."

Gotou pinched his cheek, and Masayoshi winced. "Hi-de-no-ri," Gotou enunciated for him.

"Kage-san," Masayoshi said, and Gotou pinched his other cheek. "OW! Owowowow, __mean__ -"

"I want you to call me by my __name__ , idiot," Gotou said, huffing just a little. "Why is that so difficult?"

"Because." Masayoshi rubbed his cheeks and sulked. "That's reserved for your girlfriend and her memory, right?"

Gotou hesitated – and then smiled and sighed. "It's reserved," he said, brushing his hand over Masayoshi's cheek. "For my __husband__ , now."

"Hidenori," Masayoshi said, and Gotou's heart clenched. Masayoshi made a face as he rolled the syllables about in his mouth. "Nah, Gotou-san fits you better."

He pinched both of Masayoshi's cheeks out again, and Masayoshi laughed and wiggled underneath him. "Gotou-san, Gotou-san!" he yelped, laughing hysterically. Gotou pinched Masayoshi's nose shut so he couldn't laugh and breathe and when he took a big gulping breath Gotou leaned down and kissed him.

When he let Masayoshi up for air, Masayoshi exhaled, his entire face red. "My transfer request was accepted," Gotou said, propping his head with his hand, as Masayoshi panted a little to the ceiling. "So you can curb the apartment search."

"Transfer request?" Masayoshi said, and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "This is the first I've heard."

"It was meant to be a surprise," Gotou said. "Moving us out of the prefecture – I got a promotion, I'd be the head officer in the koban. Downside is, it's a small little town, it's gonna be me and just one other officer." He brushed his hand back through his hair. "It's off a main rail line, you'd have a little bit of a commute, but-"

Masayoshi stared at him, clearly a little unsure. Then he smiled and cupped Gotou's face with his hands. "I have to travel anyway, sometimes, so – it's not a big deal," he said, and hesitated again. Gotou could feel the hesitation like a living thing, roiling, and he could sense the unspoken thought. __As good a place as any for things to end.__

He leaned in and kissed Masayoshi aggressively, and Masayoshi made a small surprised noise as Gotou rolled atop him. "You are my husband," Gotou said decisively. "You are my __mate__. I'm not going to let you die, Masayoshi."

"You can't protect me from everything," Masayoshi said, as Gotou slid between his legs.

"Try me," Gotou growled, and kissed him again.

* * *

Gotou moved slow and deliberate. Masayoshi whined against his shoulder as Gotou pressed him into the bed, spreading his legs wider, his ass off the mattress.

There was no frantic thrusting here – just a slow, steady slide of bodies, a gradual build that made Masayoshi squirm and gasp as Gotou ran his hands up Masayoshi's body, mapping his chest with his tongue. He was seated deep already, but he hadn't knotted yet – it was too early, Masayoshi thought – his eyes were still dark, even though there was a ring of gold, a portent of soon, __soon-__

" _ _Harder,"__ Masayoshi gasped into his ear, while he could still move his hips, in large snapping motions, his heat riding down, echoing deep into Masayoshi's core. Muscle memory, as he tightened on Gotou's cock, felt him give a little appreciative shudder, the moan low and throaty.

His body wouldn't forget this, Masayoshi swore to himself. His body would come alive under Gotou's hands no matter his memories, and if he had to make Gotou __promise__ he'd do it, after, just so Masayoshi would understand the feeling, the __love__ -

He groaned as Gotou hit that sweet spot, his legs locking over Gotou's hips. "Fuck," Masayoshi moaned, and then, whispered in his ear, " _ _Hidenori.__ "

Gotou lowered his head and pressed in again, a little more frantically, trying to get Masayoshi off before the swelling began. When he raised his head though, his eyes had gone completely gold, and he stilled his hips, breathing hard, eyes locked on Masayoshi's.

"Give me your knot," Masayoshi said, as if Gotou had any control over when it started, already feeling him grow, contracting down on his cock, squeezing it as the knot grew in size. Masayoshi tilted his head back into the mattress, eyes closed tight in satisfaction as he felt the stretch, the burn – it was a little bit painful, yes, but when Gotou would move his hips just a bit more the swelling knot pressed into __that__ spot, and his hips would jerk without his permission and he'd come hot and hard, all over his belly.

Masayoshi opened his eyes when Gotou touched his face, staring down at him with the strangest expression. "Gotou-san?" He said it before he could stop himself, and Gotou smiled, anyway, brushed his thumbs over the rise of Masayoshi's cheeks.

"You're crying," he said, and leaned down. Masayoshi closed one eye as he kissed right below it. "Don't cry, 'yoshi."

"I don't want to lose this," Masayoshi said. "Any of it – any of __you__..." the breath caught in his throat, hitched – and he sobbed before he could stop himself.

Gotou kept his hands on Masayoshi's face, large and warm – he was surrounding Masayoshi, inside and out, his musk the only thing Masayoshi could smell, his warmth the only thing he could feel, heartbeat loud and comforting, and Masayoshi gasped another breath, not quite a sob, not quite a moan as Gotou rocked the knot a little inside him.

"You won't," he said firmly, the weight of knowledge he couldn't possibly have making him certain. "You're not gonna lose any of this, you understand?"

"How can you be so sure?" Masayoshi's arms over his shoulders, fingernails scratching small bloody streaks over his back.

Gotou still his movement, stared down at Masayoshi with those inhuman gold eyes, and licked his lips. His teeth got sharp, before the change, and Masayoshi watched that flicker of pink tongue vanish into his mouth. "Do you trust me?" Gotou asked him, and that was the stupidest question ever, of __course__ he trusted Gotou, he trusted Gotou more than he trusted himself sometimes... he said as much, out loud, and Gotou laughed a little, nuzzled his nose and kissed him.

"This is gonna hurt," he said, when he withdrew. Masayoshi stared at him, puzzled, about to ask what, __what__ was going to hurt.

Gotou leaned a little bit down, knot shifting as he moved. Masayoshi moaned again, despite himself – the knot didn't __hurt__ , not like __that__ – but then Gotou sighed a warm breath against his neck, and bit him.


	33. july 13th

"He doesn't have long, does he?" Koji asked, leaning against the bar that Gotou had retreated to for another drink. Gotou hesitated, looked around – but there wasn't anyone in earshot that was paying attention to the two of them.

"No," Gotou said. "Akino figures that even with the suppression of the taint he's got a few months, max." He looked down into the drink the bartender had prepared, the ice cubs cracking as they settled into the liquor. "I don't know what to do."

"Bite him," Koji said, without hesitation. Gotou jerked a little and looked up at him, and Koji raised an eyebrow. "What, don't tell me you haven't thought about it."

Gotou looked across the room, at Masayoshi in the midst of all his Flamenger buddies, telling them some sort of story complete with huge gestures of his arms. Gotou took a sip of the drink, felt the alcohol burn as it slid down his throat. "Akino said the same thing," he said.

"So what's the hold-up, then?" Koji scratched his nose and straightened. "Aside from waiting for the next apex moon, that is."

"How likely do you think it is," Gotou asked him, "That Masayoshi would be affected by the moon sickness?"

"He's strong," Koji said. "Probably stronger than us. He'll be fine."

Gotou said, softly, "I hope so," and took another drink.

* * *

Masayoshi didn't yell – he inhaled sharply in pain, his entire body locked up, fingers digging punishingly into Gotou's shoulderblades – but he didn't make a __noise__ as Gotou's teeth tore into his skin and deep into the muscle.

"You __bit__ me," he said in indignation, when Gotou lifted his head finally, Masayoshi's blood on his lips. Masayoshi clapped his hand over the torn flesh and winced, clearly in pain. "Why the __hell__ did you __bite__ me, Gotou-sa-"

He stopped mid-thought, eyes wide. "You __bit__ me," he breathed.

Gotou wiped his mouth with the back of his hand – he could __taste__ the taint in Masayoshi's blood, and the worry that it might be too late lingered in his gut. "I did," he said, and inhaled sharply when Masayoshi squeezed him with his legs. "Ow, __'yoshi__ -!"

"Am I gonna-" Masayoshi's eyes were huge, and he was talking __way__ too quickly. "Did you just- Holy __shit-__ "

"Shh, __shh,__ " Gotou shifted, still buried deep inside Masayoshi, and his agitation was making him clamp down on Gotou almost painfully. "Breathe, Masayoshi, __please.__ "

"Am I a werewolf now?" Masayoshi asked, almost too eager.

"Probably," Gotou said, leaning down close. "Lift your hand, let me see."

Blood was squeezing out between his fingers – Gotou had taken a good chunk out of his shoulder because he really didn't __know__ how this was supposed to work, but when he lifted his hand, the wound didn't look as bad as Gotou thought. In fact, it wasn't even bleeding anymore. "I'd say yes," Gotou said, and licked the rivulets of blood from his shoulder.

"Holy shit," Masayoshi breathed.

"Are you okay?" Gotou lifted his head, leaned in. "Do you feel all right?"

Masayoshi frowned, furrowed his brow and clearly considered this in great detail. "I don't … feel any different," he said after a moment's contemplation. "Except my shoulder hurts like hell."

Gotou laughed despite himself. "I need to," he said, and rocked himself a little – Masayoshi's hips jerked with the motion, and he groaned.

"Gotou-san," Masayoshi breathed.

"What did I say?" Gotou said, leaning over him, digging his palms into the sheets by Masayoshi's head.

"Hidenori," Masayoshi said, and touched Gotou's face with his bloody hand. Gotou bit his lip and came, finally – and Masayoshi let out a contented noise, angling his hips up, squeezing Gotou between his legs, contracting on him, almost milking him dry.

" _ _Fuck__ ," Gotou breathed, his heart going a mile a minute. Masayoshi closed his eyes and moaned his satisfaction, even as Gotou slid himself free with a slick pop.

"Am I gonna?" Masayoshi asked excited, legs cocked wide as Gotou's seed leaked out of his ass. "Tonight...?"

"No." Gotou felt bone-weary, like he'd been running a marathon. He lay across Masayoshi's chest, panting still – moonrise wasn't __that__ far off. "Or tomorrow night, either."

"Oh." Masayoshi sounded disappointed. He brushed his fingers through Gotou's sweat-spiked hair. "But next month, then I will?"

"Probably." Gotou yawned, thought about getting up but Masayoshi's rapid heartbeat, slowing incrementally down, was like a tonic. He didn't want to move. "I turned the first cycle after I was bit, but Koji said he didn't for two cycles."

"Koji...? Oh, Kiri-san." Masayoshi paused. "Did he know you were going to do this?"

"I … discussed it. With some people." Gotou closed his eyes, as Masayoshi reached down and tugged on his ear.

"And you didn't think to discuss it with __me?__ "

"I didn't want to get your hopes up, I was having Akino look into it," he said. "Ow, Masayoshi __stop__ -"

"You could have at least __said__ it was a possibility, I've been freaking out for weeks!"

"I know." Gotou opened his eyes but didn't lift his head from Masayoshi's chest, feeling the tingles start under his skin. "I was really scared too," he said quietly. "I'm sorry."

"You can't keep things like that from me, Hidenori! Don't keep secrets!"

"Let my ear go, __owowow-__ "

"Not until you promise not to do it again!"

"I promise, I promise!" Masayoshi let him go and Gotou rubbed his ear, glaring up at Masayoshi. "Don't do that." Masayoshi stuck his tongue out at Gotou, and Gotou smiled. "You called me Hidenori, though."

Masayoshi bit his lip and looked away, then touched his shoulder tenderly. "How's it look now?" he asked, scraping at some of the blood that had dried with his fingernail.

"Mostly closed up." Gotou started to get up, and Masayoshi looped his arms over Gotou's shoulders, keeping him down. "'Yoshi, I'm gonna __change__ soon."

"Don't care," Masayoshi said. He closed his eyes. "It still hurts a lot," he said, and there was a tiny glimmer of fear in his voice. "All the way down my arm."

Gotou looked down at his left arm, alarmed – but there was no green glow – and when Gotou touched Masayoshi's arm, he didn't feel the faint impression of the lines. "It's gone," he said softly. "It's the taint, leaving your body."

Masayoshi let out a strangled, relieved noise – and Gotou leaned up and kissed him. "I'm going to change, let me-" he said, and Masayoshi held him tighter.

"You won't hurt me, Hidenori," he said, eyes still closed. He curled his fingers in the fur that appeared under his hands as Gotou changed on top of him, tears squeezing out between his lids. The wolf let out a long, exasperated noise – and then flopped back down atop Masayoshi, laying his head on Masayoshi's chest as Masayoshi laughed in relief, tears tracking their way down his face.

* * *

Masayoshi sat up on the bed, rubbing his shoulder absently when Gotou emerged from the bathroom. "How you doing?" he asked, and Masayoshi winced just a little.

"It's still sore," he said. "But it's … __different__ -sore, it's not like the taint.

"It's probably gonna ache for a while," Gotou said. "He looked away as he dried his head with the towel. "Sorry."

"Don't be," Masayoshi said cheerfully, in a tone of voice that Gotou hadn't realized had been missing. "It's a small price to pay!" He got up from the edge of the mattress, and practically __bounced__ over to Gotou, putting his arms over Gotou's shoulders and grinning. "I'm a __werewolf__ ," he said excitedly.

"Yeah," Gotou said, smiling because Masayoshi's happiness was __so__ infectious. "You're not supposed to tell people, though."

"I have to tell Ishihara-san," Masayoshi said. "So she can work my schedule around it."

"Yeah, that's about it," Gotou said. "We want to keep others out of this world, you know? Keep them safe."

Masayoshi nodded his head vigorously. "I have to come up with a new costume, too, because-"

"No," Gotou said, catching Masayoshi by the chain around his neck. "No costumes for wolf-forms, understood?"

"But-"

"Besides, we don't even know what your wolf form looks like yet." Gotou said idly, moving past Masayoshi toward the closet. "You don't need to be making costumes either way, but it would be silly to think about it now."

"No fun," Masayoshi said with a sigh. He watched Gotou get dressed, bouncing a little in place on the balls of his feet. He seemed almost over-full of energy, and it was a relief to see it, again, after the months of listless Masayoshi, lying in bed. "Are we gonna go out today? Can we go on a date? Oh! We need to take Akino-chan a thank-you present!"

"Breathe between sentences," Gotou said as he pulled on a shirt.

"Can we go on a date? Can we?"

Gotou laughed. "Okay, fine, Masayoshi – calm down, please." __You're like a puppy,__ he thought despite himself, but at least didn't say it out loud. "Get dressed, we'll go see Akino-chan."

* * *

Akino was sweeping outside her store. She'd done something to her hair again, this time the teal was in her bangs, and layered under her hair. "Akino-chan!" Masayoshi called, waving as he jogged up.

She looked up, surprised – and her eyes darted to Gotou, who was walking leisurely and letting Masayoshi get his excess energy out by jogging ahead. She looked back to Masayoshi, and her eyes widened slightly in surprise. "The taint's gone," she said, and covered her mouth with one hand.

"It __is__ ," Masayoshi bounced on the balls of his feet. "Completely! I feel like a new person."

She leaned forward, using the broom as a prop. "A new person that's a bit fuzzy on the inside?" She raised an eyebrow as Gotou stopped beside Masayoshi.

"Maybe a little," Gotou said, and Masayoshi beamed.

"I'm glad," she said. "Although I can't say I approve, it __is__ better than the alternative."

"Agreed," Gotou murmured, and Masayoshi linked his arm with Gotou's, which made Gotou jump just slightly, and turn red.

"We need to go tell Ishihara-san in person," Masayoshi said. "Then we're going to lunch, because I am __starving.__ "

Akino laughed as Gotou flushed a darker red. "You just ate," he said, and Masayoshi leaned into him.

"I know, but something smells so __good__ , and it's almost lunch-time! Oh, I know, we can go by that one park we used to, it's summer, I bet they're putting on that Ensemble! show again, let's go!"

Gotou threw a look at Akino that clearly said "save me," and she laughed again. "Have fun you two," she said. "Stop by sometime to see me, okay? Preferably not just when one of you is dying."

"Thank you," Gotou managed to get out, very heartfelt – before Masayoshi dragged him off, chattering about Ensemble! and wondering if the new summer show was updated for the new cast rotation.

Akino watched them go, still smiling, and resumed her sweeping. When the door to her store jingled, she looked back. "They're happy, Kiri-san," she said, as Kiri stopped underneath the awning, followed by a slightly shorter man, with dark red hair pulled back into a short, spikey tail at the base of his neck. "Leave them be."

"I don't plan to involve them if I can help it," Kiri said. "I'm glad things turned out well."

"Me too," Akino said. "But I won't be putting lycanthrophy in the official file as the cure for a taint."

"Good," the other man said. "There's enough unregistered werewolves out there causing trouble as it is." He looked down the street. "We should register them, at least."

"They don't need to worry about it, 'nichi-kun," Kiri said. "Let's go, then?"

"Yeah," his companion said – and Akino watched them depart, the opposite direction.

"Hm," she said, a resumed sweeping.

* * *

"Hidenori?" Masayoshi asked, as Gotou hesitated on the sidewalk. He flushed red and glanced back at Masayoshi, and Masayoshi made a face at him. " _ _You're__ the one who wants me to call you by your name, don't look at me like that."

"I'm just not used to it," he said. "Kiri was in Akino's shop. I wonder why he didn't say hello."

"Maybe he was busy," Masayoshi suggested, and Gotou shrugged, and pulled out the slightly-crumple carton of cigarettes he had in the pocket of his shorts.

"Maybe," he said, and lit a cigarette.


	34. aug 10th

Masayoshi taped the brown box closed and set aside the tape roller – then he shook his head and sneezed violently. He sneezed two more times, quickly, and Gotou leaned out of the closet. "Stop that," he said, as Masayoshi scrubbed the back of his hand over his nose and made a face.

"It's __dusty__ ," he whined. "And it smells weird, and why does the moon have to come while we're in the middle of __moving,__ this really sucks."

"The moon comes when it comes," Gotou said, sliding another full box in Masayoshi's direction. "It's amazing how much shit you managed to cram into this closet in just a few months, it just keeps filling up boxes."

Masayoshi wiped his nose again and closed the flaps on the box, reaching for the tape roller and taping the brown box closed in a practiced motion. He wrote on the box with a marker, and then sat it on top of the other one.

"Smells weird," he muttered again, but Gotou ignored him.

It __was__ weird. He'd woken up this morning as normal, face tucked against Gotou's neck but as the day progressed he started noticing that things had smells, thick smells that oozed through the air and were almost visible. Gotou's smell in particular was potent, deeply musky and tinged with tobacco and it make Masayoshi shake his head and want to bury his face in Gotou's chest because he couldn't quite get enough of it.

"Oi," Gotou said, sitting back and leaning on his hands. "You okay over there, 'yoshi? You're turning red."

"I'm fine," he squawked, and Gotou sighed and smiled at him.

The taint was definitely gone, and for the last few weeks he'd felt like a normal human being again. Heck, he'd even gone out in costume a few nights (although Gotou had caught him one night as he was sneaking off and dragged him back home by his scarf, rolling his eyes excessively). But suddenly things were different, and it was little overwhelming.

(Also, the wee tiniest bit scary, but he absolutely was __not__ going to admit that to Gotou. Did it hurt, when he changed? What did it feel like?)

He' know, soon enough.

Masayoshi sneezed again, and Gotou sighed. "Once we're done with this closet, we just have the random bits to shove into boxes, and the mover people will be here in the morning."

He looked down at the brown box, and then up around the room, where similar boxes were stacked everywhere. "I can't believe this is really happening," he said. "It's so surreal."

"I know. I've lived here for years." Gotou stood, and stretched. "It'll be a nice change of pace, I think."

"I can't believe I'm officially married to a __sergeant__ ," Masayoshi said, and Gotou blushed and scratched at the side of his face.

"It was Totsuka who recommended me for the promotion," he said, slightly pleased. "He said if I could handle keeping a leash on a vigilante superhero then managing a few junior officers would be a walk in the park."

Masayoshi beamed, then frowned. "Hey, wait a minute."

Gotou ruffled his hair. "Want to get something to eat? I know it's a little late for lunch, but you're not gonna feel like dinner."

"I'm not really hungry," Masayoshi said, hands on his legs as he looked at the floor. He caught the slight change in Gotou's scent and lifted his head immediately, eyes wide. "I'm fine, I'm fine!" he yelped – Gotou had barely even turned around. "Just, nerves."

"Well, I know a good way to get your mind off of things," Gotou said, leaning down and offering Masayoshi his hand. "Let's go out for a bit, get out of the dusty apartment, yeah?"

"Okay," Masayoshi said, and let Gotou pull him to his feet.

* * *

Masayoshi stood barefoot in the bathroom, staring at himself in the mirror and sounding disappointed. "My eyes didn't change," he said, as if Gotou hadn't noticed or made the mistake of pointing it out to him.

"Moonrise is still like, an hour off," Gotou said, sitting naked on the bed. He had a cold can of beer in one hand, resting on his thigh as the air conditioner made a wheezing sound but kept chugging on. "There's time, Masayoshi."

" _ _Your__ eyes have already gone gold," Masayoshi padded out of the bathroom, pouting.

"Maybe you won't change this cycle," Gotou suggested, and Masayoshi made a loud disappointed noise, sitting down heavily on the floor and leaning back against the boxes. "S'not __fair__ ," he said, arms crossed over his chest.

"Hey, I don't know exactly how all this works myself, it's new territory for me too." Gotou took a pull of his beer. "All that really matters is that the taint's out of your system."

Masayoshi sighed hugely, then sat up and looked at Gotou. "Want to have sex, then?"

Gotou stared at him. "No, what if you __do__ change? You don't know how to tell when it's coming, and I don't want to have to deal with knotting if you turn fuzzy in the middle of it."

"Wouldn't we change at the same time, anyway?" Masayoshi said, and Gotou shrugged loosely.

"I don't __know__. Maybe it's a few minutes off, for all we know. Like I said, new territory."

Masayoshi made a disgruntled but accepting noise. "Once we figure it out, can I knot __you__?"

Gotou's sip of beer almost went into his lungs this time. Masayoshi watched, head cocked in amusement as Gotou hacked and coughed in an attempt to clear his windpipe, because out of __everything__ that clearly hadn't occurred to him as a possibility.

"You okay, Hidenori?" Masayoshi sat on his knees at the edge of the bed, elbows on the mattress and chin in his hands as Gotou cleared his throat.

"Fine," Gotou croaked.

"Can I?" Masayoshi asked.

"Once you're settled," he said. "So not for a few cycles, at least."

Masayoshi considered this, and then nodded his head in acceptance. He pulled at his lower eyelid. "Have my eyes changed yet?"

"No, Masayoshi," Gotou said, and Masayoshi heaved out a big sigh and put his chin on his arms.

* * *

Gotou glanced at his phone when the ten minute alarm to moonrise went off. Masayoshi's eyes still hadn't changed, and he was sitting with his back against the bedframe, playing a game on his own cell phone.

 _ _What if he didn't change?__ That would be ... wonderful, actually. He clearly had some wolfy traits – he'd been complaining about the overabundence of scents all day, and rubbing constantly at his too-sensitive nose – but if he didn't __change__ then he was still, a little bit, safe.

(Also, he'd be safe from the moon-sickness.)

Although, Koji was right in that Masayoshi was pretty damn strong, and likely would never have to worry about the moon sickness anyway. Considering the overabundance of stress and worry of the last few months, having just a single small thing to worry about made him hyper-focused on it.

"Is that the moon alarm?" Masayoshi lolled his head back and looked at Gotou, who set aside his cell phone and nodded. "Cool! I'm gonna check my eyes again."

"They haven't changed," Gotou said, as Masayoshi trotted stubbornly to the bathroom. After about a minute he emerged, dejected. "Told you. What, you didn't trust me?"

"It's not __fair__ ," he said, and Gotou stood up and stretched, felt the tingling under his skin and watched as Masayoshi scratched at his arm absently.

Gotou clapped Masayoshi's shoulder as he passed, headed for the bathroom himself. "It'll work out," he said, and Masayoshi let out a disgruntled noise as he flopped on the bed.

He didn't even think about the fact he'd change in the bathroom, but at least remembered to leave the door ajar so he could nose past it just in case. He would comfort Masayoshi for a bit and then lay on the floor and luxuriate in the air conditioning, because fuck running around this city in this heat. At least in the forest the breeze felt clean and the heat felt __right__ , not oven-baked like it did reflecting off of blacktop and concrete.

Gotou stopped in the doorway and stared at the large brown lump that was laying on the bed, and thought, __holy shit, he did change.__

Masayoshi lolled his head back and looked at Gotou upside-down, ears pointed toward the floor and eyes still __blue__ in his face and said, [What?]

[Did – wait, did you understand me?] Gotou shook his head, felt the chain move a little around his neck, ring dangling. [Did you not __notice__ that you're a wolf now?]

Masayoshi slid off the bed in the least graceful way possible, and Gotou winced as he thumped into the ground. Then he sprang up on all four legs and went, [Whoa.] He hung his head and tried to look underneath himself, then twisted and tried to look at his rear. Gotou watched him start to turn in circles trying to get a good look at his tail, and sat himself, sighing in exasperation. [What do I look like? Look, there's my tail! Look, Hidenori!]

[You're going to make yourself sick,] Gotou said, watching as Masayoshi started turning in faster and faster circles before slamming himself into the side of the bed and falling over. Masayoshi flopped onto his back, tongue out and panting.

[This is so COOL,] Masayoshi said, excited. [And we can TALK, why didn't you tell me we'd be able to, I thought there would be a lot of growling and stuff but we can talk-talk, this is awesome.]

[I … can't talk to anyone else,] Gotou walked to Masayoshi and sniffed his head, and Masayoshi made an attempt to lick him but he ducked away in time. [You're not a __dog__ , 'yoshi.]

[Huh.] Masayoshi's tail thumped against the floor, and he flung himself upright and shook, all over, before putting his chin on the mattress and staring at Gotou. [Let's play!]

[Your eyes are blue, by the way,] Gotou said as he lay down across the bed. [So that's why they didn't change.] He was pretty sure that adult wolves didn't even __have__ blue eyes, but didn't mention that to Masayoshi. Rules just didn't seem to apply to him sometimes.

[COOL.] His tail was going a mile a minute. [Can we play, huh? Please?] He withdrew his head from the mattress and stood there, panting, mouth open and tongue lolling out. He pranced forward and hopped up, putting both paws on the edge of the mattress. [C'mon, Hidenori~.]

Gotou snapped his jaw idly at one of Masayoshi's legs, and he scrabbled backwards and fell over again, then hopped right back up and this time jumped up on the bed, making Gotou scramble to move. They both toppled off the bed with a thud, and Masayoshi laughed and Gotou grunted as they roughhoused across the floor.

* * *

Dawn had just started to peek through the blinds when the moon set. Masayoshi rolled on top of Gotou, sweat-soaked and exhausted and harder than he'd ever been in his life. Gotou kissed back desperately, one hand tight in Masayoshi's hair, the other pressing their erections together in an iron grip.

Masayoshi rutted against him, felt like he was going to explode as Gotou squeezed them together, increased the pressure as clear slick spilled from their cocks, lubing the effort. Gotou didn't let him up, didn't stop kissing him until they both came, spilling over their bellies, sticky and thick.

"Holy __shit,__ " Masayoshi said, gasping for air like he was surfacing for the first time, sweat dripping from his bangs. "That was __amazing.__ " He went to draw back, away but their chains were tangled, rings clinking against each other. Gotou laughed as they tried to fumble themselves free, and took the opportunity to kiss a startled Masayoshi again.

* * *

After showers and some cool drinks, they sat side-by-side on the floor, backs to the bed frame where the now bare mattress sat. They were waiting on the movers now, with just about every thing packed up that could be packed up. "Do you think," Masayoshi said, leaning back and staring at the ceiling. "We can talk like that because you're the one who bit me?"

"It's as good a theory as any," Gotou said. There was no more beer in the fridge, just a few bottles of water and canned coffee. "You need to calm down a little, though, the bouncing off the walls is a little much."

"Well tonight we can go running, right?" Masayoshi asked, glancing over at him slyly and Gotou smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah," he said. "In the forest proper, too."

Masayoshi looped his arm over Gotou's neck and knocked their heads together. "I love you, Hidenori-kun," he said happily, and Gotou laughed, feeling for the first time in a long time, content.


	35. epilog

Gotou sighed and looked up at the clock, before he glanced to the open door of the koban. It had cooled down significantly, but it wasn't yet __cold__ , and he enjoyed the crisp autumn air. It also carried with it the scent of a certain someone who was skulking outside the door and trying his best not to be seen. "You can come in, Masayoshi," he called without getting up from his desk. "I'm alone."

Masayoshi popped his head around the door and made a face. "I'm not supposed to bother you when you're on duty," he said, as Gotou beckoned him in.

"I did say that," Gotou said. "But you're work today. Did you know I had three complaints waiting for me this morning about wild dog sightings?"

Masayoshi let out a loud groan and seated himself in the empty chair that visitors often used. "I didn't even __do__ anything," he said.

Gotou raised an eyebrow at him.

"Okay, so two goats got out of their pen and I __encouraged__ them to go home and closed the gate as best I could behind them." Masayoshi shrugged loosely, and Gotou put his elbow on the desk, chin in hand, and __stared__ at Masayoshi.

" _ _That__ was what you were doing when you were late last night?" he said. "Hashimoto was in here this morning demanding a permit to shoot at dogs and boars thinking they're eating up his livestock."

"I didn't eat __either__ of the goats," Masayoshi said indignantly. "I don't like goat, anyway."

"Remember our talk about trying not to be seen?" Gotou said, tapping his fingers on his chin. " _ _Especially__ not doing things that a regular animal wouldn't do?"

"Sorry." Masayoshi didn't sound sorry at all.

"Yeah," Gotou said with an amused sigh. He lifted his chin from his hand and nodded as the young officer who worked the overnight shift arrived, headed toward the changing room. "Good evening, Ueno-san."

"Evenin', senpai," he said, tossing off a wave to Masayoshi as he vanished into the back room.

"You didn't let Hashimoto-san have a gun permit, did you?" Masayoshi asked, sounding only a touch concerned.

"Of course not, the old man would start shooting at everything that offended him." Gotou looked back when Ueno leaned out of the changing room, eyebrow raised. "Of course you didn't hear that from me."

"Anything of interest happen today?" Ueno asked as he emerged, setting his hat on his head. "Aside from Hashimoto-san, every day he has a complaint is a new adventure."

"Just wild dogs acting up again," Gotou said. "It's been quiet, but it'll pick up again this weekend when the inn opens from its renovations."

"Huh," Ueno said, and picked up the reports Gotou had stuck into files but hadn't put in the cabinet yet. "Say, have you ever noticed that the wild dog sightings always seem to happen right around the full moon?"

"Can't say that I have," Gotou said as he stood up.

"S'weird. Probably just a coincidence." Ueno nodded to Masayoshi and smiled. "Have a good evening, Hazama-san."

"Give me just a minute to get changed," Gotou said, and Masayoshi rolled his eyes.

"We live __right behind__ the koban, you don't have to get changed here."

"Five minutes max, 'yoshi. I've got to log a few things, then I'm done."

Masayoshi sighed and sat back down.

* * *

They'd barely gotten through the front door when Gotou caught Masayoshi's shoulder and spun him into the wall. Masayoshi laughed as Gotou kissed him, deep and passionate. Masayoshi gripped the back of Gotou's charcoal-colored hoodie and tucked his leg up over Gotou's, grinding up against him.

"How much time until moonrise?" Masayoshi gasped against his ear as Gotou slid one hand down the back of his pants.

"Hours," Gotou growled,

"Don't mind me," Koji said, sitting on the stairs that led to the second level and casually eating an apple.

Gotou __jumped__ , separated physically from Masayoshi and almost tripped himself on the step up out of the genkan. He sat down hard with a loud 'whuff.' Masayoshi covered his now flaming-red face with one hand, and said, " _ _Kiri-kun.__ "

"What is he- what are you __doing__ here?" Gotou said, chest heaving.

"Front door's unlocked, figured I'd let myself in." He took another bite of apple. "It's a nice place you've got here, plenty big, lots of space."

"We're not looking to lend out rooms," Gotou said, taking his shoes off at least since he was already seated and setting his shoes down.

"I'm not looking, period." He looked over at Masayoshi, still chewing. "I was in the area, thought I'd stop by and say hi."

"This is a pretty out-of-the-way area to be by," Gotou said suspiciously, and Koji shrugged.

"You've parked yourself somewhere nice and rural, with plenty of forest to roam in. I'd say you've done quite well, all things considered."

"Thanks," Masayoshi said awkwardly. "I'm... gonna go make tea. Hidenori?"

"It's fine," Gotou said. "Tea's fine, Masayoshi."

"Oooh, do you have any of Akino's special blend?" Koji stood up as Masayoshi went down the hall toward the kitchen.

"What are you really doing here, Koji?" Gotou asked as he stepped up from the genkan.

"Relax, it's nothing bad," Koji said. "I promise."

* * *

The sitting room was small and cramped – but Gotou had always liked that, it felt cozy and lived-in. The kotatsu was already out even if they hadn't used it yet, several magazines sitting out in disarray, and a half-finished model Masayoshi had been working on of FlamenRobo: Advanced Prototype from the not-even-close-to-reality anime that had been airing recently.

("I'm in an anime!" Masayoshi had yelled excitedly, and watched it dutifully every week. The last episode Gotou had a chance to see the Flamengers were in space battling evil clones of themselves. Masayoshi was __enthralled.__ )

Koji sat opposite Gotou as Masayoshi brought them all tea. "I'm __not__ a housewife," he said archly as Koji opened his mouth to say something.

"That's __not__ what I was going to say," Koji said, but didn't say what he was going to. "So how are you liking the werewolf thing?" he asked instead, as Masayoshi sat down himself.

"Hidenori doesn't like it when I say that it's fun, but it's fun," he said, and Gotou rumbled. "It __is__."

"I'm glad," Koji said. "I'm happy it worked out for you two. Most people aren't so lucky."

"So what are you doing here," Gotou said. "Really? It's not just to check up on us."

"Well, it __is__ to check up on you, but not for the reason that you think." Koji sat forward. "You know how werewolves are usually made, by those gone mad with the moon-sickness?"

"Yeah," Gotou said, not entirely following.

"I have a friend – you haven't met him yet, Kage-kun – he's tracking and registering werewolves, trying to trace the moon-sickness to its roots, maybe even find a cure for lycanthropy." Masayoshi and Gotou looked at each other. "There are a __lot__ of bad people out there, who use werewolves and other creatures of the night for bad means; and currently there's no way to reverse the curse. He's trying to at least work against that."

"I don't like the idea of wolves being __registered__ ," Gotou said. "What if someone got their hands on that list, what then?"

"Yeah," Koji said. "I don't quite like it either, but I __do__ like the idea of stopping bad guys, so. We argue a lot, sometimes make out, you know how it goes." He waved his hand in the air dismissively.

"So what does that have to do with us?" Masayoshi asked.

"You guys are secure, and off the grid. I've had 'nichi keep you two off the official lists, too – so I was hoping you could be kind of a safe-house, if things get rough for some of our pack." Koji rubbed the back of his head. "Right now, it's only me, Akino-chan, and 'nichi-kun who know you two are wolves. We're gonna keep it that way, but-"

"No," Gotou said, and Masayoshi smacked his arm.

"Yes," he said. "We'll help you, Kiri-san."

"Masayoshi," Gotou said, and Masayoshi crossed his arms.

"He's not even asking us to __fight__ , __Gotou-san__ ," he said, and Gotou winced. "We can at least look after anyone who needs looking after. We are in the middle of nowhere, now."

"Thank you," Koji said and sighed in relief. "We've had nowhere to stash the pups, and I think being out here would help a lot."

"'Pups?'" Gotou repeated, clearly not liking the sound of that.

"Just until we find their parents," Koji added, almost apologetically. "They were being kept as hostages by a small-time yakuza and we haven't been able to locate their parents, we can't keep little ones-"

"There are werewolf __puppies?__ " Masayoshi breathed, his eyes huge. "There is such a thing?"

" _ _No__ ," Gotou said. Masayoshi smacked his arm again.

"-in our base," he finished, amused.

"How can you say no to children in need, Hidenori? You're a police officer, aren't you?"

"Stop __hitting__ me, Masayoshi!" Gotou caught his hand by the wrist and growled, an undertone of actual menace to the noise. Koji looked at his phone.

"Oh," he said. "I should go, then."

* * *

"You're not gonna stay?" Masayoshi asked as Koji pulled on his shoes, standing in the genkan. "Moon'll be up in the next hour."

"Thanks for the invite," Koji said. "But I don't think your husband's too pleased with me at the moment." He straightened and shouldered his knapsack. "Besides, with the moon nipping at my heels I'll be halfway to the next town on foot before it even peeks over the mountains." He tapped his foot to make sure his shoe was on good.

"Why haven't you taken the kids to the police?" Masayoshi said, and Koji smiled up at him.

"They've been through a lot," Koji said. "The police won't be able to protect them from the yakuza – and they wouldn't know what to do with werewolves. We have to operate on our own to protect our kind, yanno?"

Masayoshi nodded his head. "Someone should work on a policing force for the night creatures," he said. "Something that operates under the shadow of the actual police? I don't know..."

"It's not a bad idea." Koji raised his hand in a wave. "It's kinda what we're going for, but our pack is too small, right now. Maybe in time."

Masayoshi waved as Koji let himself out, and shut the door securely behind him, before he padded back to the sitting room, where Gotou was having a sulk over his tea.

"It's just a temporary thing," Masayoshi said as he sat on his knees next to Gotou, nudging him with his shoulder. "Besides, how can you say no to helping __kids__ , that's just messed up."

"You're going to get too attached to them and be mopey for two months when their parents are found and they have to leave," Gotou said. "Remember when you watched Rina-chan's baby last month, when her husband had to have that emergency surgery and she didn't want to leave the hospital?"

"Mm," Masayoshi said, leaning into Gotou. "We had some really good sex after that."

"Yeah, and every other word out of your __mouth__ was 'I want kids.'" Gotou said, but his tone had slid from sulking to mildly amused. "We can't have kids, 'yoshi, especially not in this lifestyle."

"There is nothing __wrong__ or __shameful__ with our lifestyle, Hidenori- _ _kun.__ "

"I meant that we're werewolves, Masayoshi, and you know it."

"I wonder what kind of jerk would bite __kids__ ," Masayoshi said heavily. "I'd rip out their throats in a heartbeat." He bared his teeth, sharper than usual already, and now Gotou laughed and nuzzled his face.

"C'mon, moon will be up soon. Let's clean up first."

"Oh!" Masayoshi walked on his knees over to the television. "Let me set my recording before I forget, I don't want to miss the episodes on tonight."

* * *

It grew chilly as night fell, and thick clouds scuttled across the sky. There was a heady smell of ozone in the air, forecasting the storm system that would move through later in the night. All the same they left out once the moon rose, slinking out the back of the small house and slipping into the woods beyond the road.

It was amazing, to run free between the trees, and Masayoshi would race Gotou, dodging branches and jumping small creeks. They'd get to a break in the trees – there was one set of boulders long since fallen down the hillside, they formed a small cave that they'd chased a bear out of and would use as a rest in inclement weather. Masayoshi scrabbled up atop the rock, looking out across the landscape played below – the small blurb of houses that made up the village, the train station.

 _ _Home__ , he thought, a little satisfied.

In the far distance, he heard the lonely howl, echoing across the night air. Gotou, below him, raised his head to the sky and responded, his howl sending a shudder down Masayoshi's spine. Then he lifted his head too, and joined in the moon-song.


End file.
